Dreams of Glass
by SkyWarrior108
Summary: DISCONTINUED. What if Azula's plan to double-cross Long Feng backfired and the Dai Li remained loyal to him? The whole gAang is in this one. Eventual Azula/Katara/Ty Lee including various permutations of said OT3 with some Sokka/Suki and Zuko/Mai.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Avatar: The Last Airbender_. However, I do own this story. Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Princess Azula, wearing the robes of a Kyoshi Warrior was being escorted through the steel holding cells of Ba Sing Se by a pair of Dai Li agents, who were holding tightly onto her arms. They stopped at the holding cell of the former Grand Secretariat, Long Feng.

"What is this about? Your agents show up in the middle of the night and drag me down here? You will not treat a Kyoshi Warrior this way!" Azula seethed as she struggled against her captors.

"But you are not a Kyoshi Warrior, are you?" he asked in a sinister voice, rising from his bench. "Princess Azula of the Fire Nation!"

The princess stopped her struggling. "What do you want?"

"I want to make a deal. It's time that I regain control of Ba Sing Se. And you have something I need."

"Oh?"

"The Earth King's trust."

"Why should I help you?" she asked warily.

"Because I can get you the Avatar."

"I'm listening," she replied and both smiled wickedly.

* * *

Everything had gone according to plan. The coup had gone off without a hitch, executed with complete efficiency. As an added bonus, Azula now had her traitorous brother in captivity along with the Water Tribe girl who traveled with the Avatar. He would no doubt come looking for her. Now there was just one loose end to tie up before Ba Sing Se and the entire Earth Kingdom would belong to the Fire Nation.

The Fire Nation Princess focused on Long Feng, who had just entered the throne room, followed by a troop of the Dai Li, all lined in rows and standing before Azula.

"Now comes the part where I double-cross you. Dai Li, arrest the Fire Nation Princess," Long Feng ordered.

To Azula's surprise, the agents followed the order and several rock gloves were launched at her. Before any could grab a hold of her, she flipped up into the air, avoiding the attack and shot off a quick succession of fireballs, taking out several Dai Li. But the ground underneath her shifted as she landed, throwing off her stance and making her unable to get in an effective position to defend herself. There were just too many agents, and the gloves kept coming at full force, beating against her body, and she finally fell to the floor defeated.

A beaten and bloody Azula was chained and pulled to her feet by two Dai Li agents. Golden eyes filled with contempt and hatred glared at Long Feng.

"You seem surprised, Princess. Did you really think earthbenders at the caliber of the Dai Li would follow someone from the Fire Nation? Especially one bent on destroying their very home. You either underestimated our intelligence or overestimated your charisma. But you are still worth something," Long Feng finished, digging his fingers into a particularly nasty looking gash on Azula's face. She gritted her teeth, silently seething. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of hearing her in pain.

"You know what to do with her," he ordered, quickly dropping his hand and smiling wickedly at the princess before the Dai Li dragged her away.

* * *

"We've moved the Water Tribe girl, just as you instructed."

"Good. The Avatar's other companions have escaped along with the Earth King, so she's our only lure. I'm certain they are already looking for her."

"What of the Fire Nation Prince, sir?"

"He gives us no bargaining power whatsoever. He's a traitor in the eyes of his father. However, he still may prove to be useful. Leave him in the catacombs for now."

"And the Princess's two accomplices?"

"The same goes for them. Make sure to keep them tied up and separated. We'll transfer all three soon enough."

* * *

"Long Feng, sir. We deposited the two Fire Nation girls in the catacombs, but we discovered upon our arrival that the prince has escaped."

"How is that possible?"

"An earthbender must have freed him. Probably the Avatar searching for the Water Tribe girl."

"The banished prince is inconsequential. It's no loss. But there's no way the Avatar will find the girl. Every precaution has been taken. We hold the advantage."

* * *

The cell was cold, small, and windowless—the only light coming in from the flickering torches in the hallways through a small panel in the door. Three days she had been here, but had yet to see a soul. Twice a day, a tray of barely edible slop was sent through a slot in the door. She was free to move about the tiny cell, which consisted only of a pallet and a hole where she could relieve herself.

Katara had no idea where she was or what was taking Aang so long to find her. The more time that went by, she found it harder to stay positive and began to worry that something had happened to him, Toph, or Sokka.

Mentally she berated herself for allowing herself to be captured by Azula, although she certainly hadn't expected to see her or her two lackeys when she entered the throne room. She was even more surprised to see Zuko thrown into the catacombs with her. She remembered him sharing the story of the loss of his mother and found herself actually feeling sorry for him. But before she could apologize for having yelled at him earlier, the banished prince was surrounded by crystals, inhibiting his ability to move. Katara was without her waterskin and unable to bend. Resistance was futile, and the Dai Li agents had taken her away to the cell she was in now.

She couldn't help but wonder why Azula had her moved from the catacombs. But then again, the princess had that knack of being ten steps ahead of everyone, so there must have been something Katara wasn't thinking of.

The only thing that broke up the monotony of Katara's days were her increasingly worried thoughts. Until today.

The door of an adjacent cell creaked open. Katara then heard the unmistakable sound of Long Feng's voice.

"Worthless Fire Nation scum!" he hissed before the sound of flesh hitting against flesh echoed through the hallway. The prisoner's chains rattled against the wall.

"_Oh no!"_ Katara thought. _"They must have taken Zuko here as well…"_

The beating continued for several minutes, getting increasingly violent, and Katara found herself feeling sick. The only sound the captive made was an occasional grunt. After a particularly vicious strike, she heard a muffled cry that was undeniably female. Katara's eyes widened. _"That couldn't be Zuko. Then who…"_ her thoughts were cut off by shadows outside her own cell.

Two Dai Li agents entered, immediately sending their rock gloves at Katara's wrists and ankles, pinning her against the wall. She could see the outline of Long Feng at the doorway before he stepped in.

"And you, water peasant. You and your friends nearly ruined everything I had created. You do realize your foolish actions have put the entire Earth Kingdom at risk," he spoke. "I will have my revenge. And I will enjoy every minute of it," he smiled cruelly at her before landing several blows on the girl's face and torso, forcing her to double over as he knocked the wind out of her.

"That's just a small taste of what's in store for you," he finished with a sneer before turning his back on Katara and walking out the door. The agents retrieved their gloves and the waterbender fell to the floor gasping for breath.

* * *

"What are we going to do? Long Feng has completely overthrown the government. The Fire Nation is poised to launch a full-scale attack on Ba Sing Se and the instability this coup has created could throw the Earth Kingdom into a civil war. And on top of that, we still have no idea where Katara is," Sokka paced.

"Or Azula for that matter," Iroh pointed out.

"Why does it matter where she is?" Sokka asked, halting in his tracks.

"I'm sure Long Feng intends to use her as leverage to get the Fire Nation to halt their attack, but he doesn't know my brother. At best, he will leave his daughter to rot, and that could have a dangerous effect on her mind. My niece may appear calm and calculated on the outside, but she is very unstable. She's never failed at anything in her life. But this time she miscalculated and it led to a major failure. This will not sit well with the Fire Lord."

Aang, Sokka, Toph, and Zuko all stared at Iroh in disbelief.

"Why are you so surprised, Zuko?"

"Because she's always been father's favorite. He always said Azula was born lucky and that I was lucky to be born."

"She may be his favored child, but in the end, she is still just a pawn to him. Zuko, you know your father is not a forgiving man and does not compromise. He will discard her now that she's used up her usefulness."

"You said yourself that she's crazy and she needs to go down. Are you suggesting that we help her now?"

"I'm not suggesting anything. I just think we should be prepared. An unstable Azula could be more dangerous than a composed Azula."

Aang visibly shuddered at the thought. He was usually the one on the receiving end of the Fire Nation Princess's attacks. So far he had managed to come away relatively unscathed, but a small part of him feared her.

"We still have to find Katara," Aang said firmly.

"But we also have to stop the Fire Nation," Toph added.

"And restore the Earth Kingdom's government," Sokka finished.

"I feel like there aren't enough of us, that we're being forced to go in different directions," Aang sighed. "With the Fire Nation's use of war machines, it will just be a matter of time before they penetrate the walls of Ba Sing Se. The Terra Team is now under the command of Long Feng and not General Sung, so it's not like we can go help them defend the walls."

"Long Feng is probably trying to get us to split up. We need to stick together no matter what. Right now, the most important thing is rescuing Katara. I have a feeling that when we find her, we'll find Long Feng. If we take him down, we can reinstate the Earth King to power and stabilize the government. If that happens, together with the Earth Kingdom's military, we can make a stand against the Fire Nation's army," Sokka explained.

"You see, my nephew, this is a perfect example of thinking things through," Iroh told Zuko with a knowing smile.

"It's also highly optimistic, Uncle," Zuko rolled his eyes.

"What other choice do we have?" Toph asked. "Besides, now that Aang has mastered the Avatar State, we'll be fine. Right, Twinkle Toes?"

"Uh, yeah…" he replied nervously. "Everything will be just fine."

* * *

The Fire Nation Princess was aware that the Water Tribe peasant was in the cell next to hers after Long Feng's little tirade. She ignored the new bruises that were forming on her body from the beating she had just received and tried to work the disgusting cloth that was used as a gag out of her mouth.

Azula couldn't help but notice that her treatment had taken a sudden turn for the worst. The chains hadn't been taken off of her since her arrest, but in the first two days of her captivity, she had been left alone for the most part. Several Dai Li would come to bring her food, but that was about it. They would never speak to her and she knew that there was no point in wasting her energy trying to get information from them. Then sometime during last night, she had been bound and gagged before being moved to this new location.

Initially, Azula had reasoned that Long Feng would try to strike a deal with the Fire Lord. She was confident that he would agree to whatever Long Feng proposed and then go back on it and together they would lead the attack on Ba Sing Se anyway.

But after being transported to this cell—which had much poorer conditions than the first one the Dai Li had kept her in—and this latest visit from Long Feng, some doubt started to creep in. She thought of Zuko.

"_No, no… Father wouldn't leave me here. I'm too valuable to him. Not like Zuzu,"_ she told herself, trying to quell her doubts. _"Father needs me."_

* * *

"Iroh, can I talk to you?" Aang asked Iroh, who was busy brewing some tea.

"Certainly, Aang. What's on your mind?" he replied with a kind smile.

"Well, remember what I told you in the tunnel leading to the catacombs? About how I met with a Guru who could teach me to master the Avatar State? The Eastern Air Temple is where we trained together. I thought that by coming back here, he might be able to finish teaching me."

"I suspected as much," Iroh said with a nod.

"But he's gone now," Aang sighed. "I don't know what to do."

Iroh handed him a cup of tea. "Setbacks are an inevitable part of life. But if you find a way to learn from them instead of letting them weigh you down, you will end up where you need to be."

* * *

Katara had come to two conclusions. Long Feng had been released from prison and regained control over the Dai Li, and therefore, Ba Sing Se. The other was that the captive in the cell next to hers was either Azula, Mai, or Ty Lee. How any of those things happened was still beyond her understanding.

But after what Long Feng had said to her, Katara had a feeling that she was his only captive and that her friends were safe. She still had hope that they would find her and together they would set things right.

* * *

It was late and Sokka was having trouble sleeping. His thoughts swirled with worry about his sister's wellbeing, the Fire Nation's impending attack on the city, and most of all, Suki. It was obvious that Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee had fought with the Kyoshi Warriors. He had noticed that Mai and Ty Lee tended to opt for incapacitating their opponents over killing them outright. But Azula was a whole different story. He remembered when she shot her own uncle with a blast of blue fire in that abandoned Earth Kingdom town.

Suki was the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors and most likely would have been the one to square off against Azula. Sokka began to fear the worst. That the girl he loved had suffered at the hands of that monster—that she had lost her life.

He shook his head. _"No, she has to be alive. She just has to be. I'll find you, Suki. I promise._"

Toph laid in her sleeping bag a few feet away. She could feel the turmoil that Sokka was going through. Just as she was about to get up to attempt to comfort him, she noticed that he seemed to calm down and had finally drifted off to sleep.

"_Good. He needs his sleep. We all do,"_ she thought to herself. The plan was to get an early start tomorrow. They would leave the Eastern Air Temple and resume their search for Katara.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The creaking of the cell door brought Azula's attention forward. She hadn't seen anyone since Long Feng's visit earlier in the day, and had spent the time trying to find a weakness in the chains that held her captive to no avail.

"As you probably figured out, I made a proposition to the Fire Lord—your safe return home in exchange for a stand down in arms against Ba Sing Se. But it turns out that he doesn't want you to return to the Fire Nation," Long Feng informed the Fire Nation Princess as he entered her cell.

"_He's lying,"_ Azula thought to herself, unable to respond due to still being gagged. She glared at him instead.

"Well, not just yet at least," he elaborated. "Your father has proposed a different sort of deal, and I'm more than happy to oblige, especially since it will guarantee the safety of my city. He wishes you to stay here awhile longer."

"_He's lying,"_ Azula repeated in her mind, but no matter how many times she said it, part of her feared he was telling the truth. _"Father needs me."_

Two figures appeared at the doorway then and Azula's eyes widened in surprised as they stepped into the cell.

"I believe you all know each other," Long Feng continued with a sinister smile. "Ladies, why don't you tell the princess about your trip to Lake Laogai."

* * *

Katara lay on the pallet in her cell. She had been just about to fall asleep, when the sound of the creaking hinges on the adjacent cell had caught her attention. Just the sound of Long Feng's voice was enough to send chills up her spine. In Katara's mind, it embodied the very sound of corruption.

She heard the words he spoke to his captive, and to her shock, realized that it was, in fact, Princess Azula who was mere feet away from her, separated only by a thin metal wall. She was even more surprised to learn that the Fire Lord didn't want her to be returned home safely. Wasn't she his favored child?

But it was the mention of Lake Laogai that filled her with apprehension. Katara had been fairly certain that the underground reeducation prison holding had been destroyed, but perhaps it was only partially so—just enough to keep the wool over the Earth King's eyes.

An opening of her cell door pulled her attention away from what was happening in the next cell. She quickly got to her feet, ready to face whomever it was that entered. Not that there was much she could do without her water skin.

Two Dai Li agents stepped in and shot out chained metal cuffs from their sleeves, capturing Katara's wrists. She struggled against the restraints, which only resulted in the agents yanking on the chains and forcing her to the floor, stunning her.

They then lifted her to her feet and pushed her against the wall so that her back was facing the room, before chaining her to said wall and lifting her prison shift up.

Long Feng strode in holding a whip then, and upon seeing his captive restrained, nodded approvingly at the Dai Li.

"One lash for every day I was in prison because of you," he snarled.

Katara tensed, dreadfully anticipating the strikes from the whip. She heard the whistle of leather sailing through the air before she felt the crack against her back. She hissed and gritted her teeth. The second lash was harsher than the first and broke the skin. She couldn't stop herself from crying out in pain.

After what seemed like an eternity, the lashing ceased. She then felt hands against the back of her neck, unhooking the clasp on her necklace. Long Feng grabbed a hold of Katara's last link to her mother, and tucked it inside his sleeve. Instinctively, she went to reach for her now bare neck, but the restraints wouldn't allow it.

"You won't be needing this any longer," he explained and the trio of men abruptly left before she could object.

Katara's wounds oozed blood and her back felt like it was on fire. She ignored the tears running down her face—from the pain and from the loss of her necklace—as she got her labored breathing under control. All she wanted to do was lie down and sleep—to escape through her dreams.

"Your time is up, ladies. You can come back to see the princess tomorrow," Katara heard Long Feng call into Azula's cell. His voice held a dark and ominous tone. There were no other sounds coming from next door other than the cell door closing.

Katara wondered if Azula had suffered a similar fate as her before finally falling into a fitful sleep.

* * *

"_He's lying,"_ Azula repeated over and over in her mind until it became a mantra, completely shutting out the physical pain and pushing away the memory of what had just happened. Her two closest friends—her only friends—had tortured her. She didn't understand it, but somehow she knew that it wasn't Mai and Ty Lee who had done those things. Long Feng had done something to their minds—to bend them to his will.

Eventually, Azula began to fade out of consciousness. Memories of her father and brother's Agni Kai filled her mind as she slept.

* * *

"Sir, the Avatar's bison has been spotted."

"Good. Make sure to deliver the message," Long Feng ordered, handing his subordinate a Water Tribe betrothal necklace.

* * *

"It's a trap," Aang stated, staring intently at the necklace in his hand, almost willing the object to give him a solution.

"Of course it's a trap," Zuko replied.

"What if we turn the tables? Right now, Long Feng holds the advantage because he has Katara, but at least we know where she is now," Sokka mused. "The Council of Five are all under arrest, and could quite possibly be in the same location as Katara. Currently, all the generals' troops are under Long Feng's command, but we know that most of them aren't happy about it. If we could get them on our side…"

"I thought we were trying to prevent a civil war from breaking out, not start one," Toph interrupted.

"Toph is right," Iroh added. "I understand your thinking, Sokka, but what you are proposing could quickly escalate into something that is beyond our control. We need to keep the Earth Kingdom united if we are to stand a chance against the Fire Nation's attack."

"Then what do you suggest?" Sokka asked the group, realizing that Toph and Iroh were right.

"Normally, I would say that we wait until the right moment, but we're running short on time. Maybe we should just go in there and bust some skulls," Toph said with a crooked grin.

"No, that won't work. Trap, remember?" Sokka replied.

"I've got it," Zuko spoke up. "Uncle, you said that Long Feng probably intends to use Azula as leverage against my father. If what you said is true about that plan not working out so well, maybe we can give Long Feng something he can really use as leverage."

"Like what?" Aang asked.

"You."

"What?" Aang, Sokka, and Toph asked at once.

"Remember when I first fought you at the South Pole? You surrendered yourself in order to save Sokka and Katara's village, but then escaped. You did that with your hands tied behind your back. I'm sure you could do it again, especially in the Avatar State," Zuko explained, recalling Aang's awesome display of power in Avatar Roku's temple.

"I don't know, Zuko," Aang hedged. "That's probably exactly what Long Feng wants me to do."

"It's too risky," Toph added, sensing Aang's hesitation. She knew something wasn't right and that it had something to do with the Avatar State.

Suddenly, all eyes were on Iroh, who was the only one besides Momo and Appa not to have suggested a particular course of action.

"Long Feng and the Dai Li are watching us, you know. So our options are limited. But I am confident that together we can accomplish what we need to," Iroh explained, "with or without the Avatar State," he added looking knowingly at Aang. "Toph's suggestion is actually the best one. But first, we need to think like our enemy so we can be as prepared as possible. It may appear that the element of surprise is not on our side, but it's funny how quickly that can change."

* * *

Fortunately, Long Feng had not returned since his visit the night before. A Dai Li agent had come by early in the morning to remove Katara's chains. Exhausted from the lack of good sleep during the night, she stumbled over to her pallet and passed out on her stomach.

She awoke to find the regular tray of slop that was supposed to serve as food. Crawling over to the tray, she made a decision. Her captors gave her just enough water to drink, and never a drop more—ensuring that she wouldn't be able to effectively bend. At least not to attack them with any real force, but there was still enough she could use to attempt to heal herself.

It wasn't easy, but Katara managed to bend the water to her back and close up the lacerations that threatened to get infected if left uncared for. That was all she could do for now. There was still some pain, but she figured she could work on it later.

Numbly, she ate the rest of the food, praying that Long Feng would not come back and that the next face she would see would instead be a friendly one.

* * *

A hard slap across her face abruptly woke Azula from her restless sleep. Amber eyes opened to see gray ones staring at her. Normally, they were vibrant and filled with adoration for the Fire Nation Princess. Now they were dull and almost soulless. It angered Azula to see her friend like this. _"What did he do to her?"_

* * *

Aware of what was happening in the princess's cell, Katara couldn't stop from flinching each time she heard a the dull thud of a punch or kick and the pained grunt that often followed it. She couldn't believe it would ever be possible, but Katara found herself actually feeling sorry for Azula and wanting to stop what was happening to her. _"No one should have to suffer like this."_

* * *

Aang, Sokka, Toph, Zuko, and Iroh waited until nightfall before carrying out their rescue attempt. They used the darkness to cloak them. Through Long Feng's message, they were able to determine more or less where Katara was being held—in a nearly impenetrable prison holding built within the thick walls of the mountains near Lake Laogai.

Using their earthbending, Aang and Toph led the way through the back end of the mountain wall, while Iroh and Zuko provided a light source. Of course, there was a slight obstacle that previously would have been difficult to overcome. What made the prison so impenetrable was the fact that it was encased in metal. Toph took care of that without a problem—and that was part of what Iroh meant when he talked about the element of surprise. Long Feng and the Dai Li wouldn't have anticipated them getting in this way. They assumed the only way the Avatar and his friends would make an attempt would be through the front entrance, which was where Long Feng's trap had been set.

Upon entering, they were able to see that they were in a small cavern that held a good amount of rock and crystal, much to Sokka's chagrin. But having the place be made entirely out of metal would have been asking for too much. Earthbenders would not put themselves at such a disadvantage.

Toph set her hands on the floor to heighten her sense of any vibrations. "There's a much larger cavern to the left. A lot of activity in there," she explained quietly. "There are a number of cells to the right. That has to be where Sweetness is. If we're lucky, the generals will be too."

"Okay, Toph and I will go right and the rest of you go left," Sokka suggested.

"What happened to the idea of us sticking together?" Zuko asked.

"I'm not taking a risk in something happening to my sister while we're busy fighting Long Feng."

"He's right," Aang agreed. "And we still have the element of surprise on our side."

"We'll join up with you guys as soon as we break Katara out," Sokka promised.

* * *

Katara heard a pair of footsteps racing down the hall, getting closer to her cell, followed by the sound of her brother's voice.

"Katara, we're here to get you out," he called into her cell. She smiled weakly as relief washed over her.

The sound of metal being crushed filled her ears, and she realized the door was literally being ripped off its hinges. More light from the hallway began to trickle in, and she saw that it was Toph—metalbending.

The two of them entered the cell, as Sokka went to help her up from the pallet. "Here, thought you could use this," Sokka grinned as he handed Katara her water skin.

"Thanks. Where's Aang?"

"He's with Zuko, Iroh, and the Earth generals, probably taking down Long Feng and the Dai Li right now."

"Zuko and Iroh?" Katara asked, surprised.

"Yeah, they're on our side now. It's a long story, but we don't have time right now. Let's just get out of here first," Sokka said, leading Katara out the door.

"Wait." Katara paused outside Azula's cell.

"What is it, Sugar Queen?" Toph asked.

"This is Azula's cell. We have to take her with us."

"Are you crazy, Katara?" Sokka looked at her incredulously.

She shook her head. "Long Feng has been torturing her and plans to eventually turn her over to the Fire Lord in exchange for Ba Sing Se's safety. It's not going to be a pleasant homecoming. Sokka, we can't just leave her."

"She's right. You do remember what he did to Zuko, don't you?" Toph added, not really expecting an answer.

He sighed. "Fine," he relented, but Toph was already ripping the door off its hinges. The sight that met the siblings shocked them.

The Fire Nation Princess was gagged and wore a brown prison shift that was so tattered it hardly covered her body, which was now a mass of bruises and cuts—many that were clearly infected. Her wrists and ankles were rubbed raw from the shackles, her dead weight exacerbating the situation.

Katara stepped inside, ignoring the stench that clung to the floor and walls. She noticed that Azula had passed out and her skin was much paler than usual. To her horror, there was a stiletto stuck in her right thigh. She recognized the weapon. It was one of Mai's.

"Spirits, what has he done to you?" Katara whispered as she instinctively bent the water from her water skin and carefully removed the gag from Azula's mouth.

Sokka stood there stunned. He never could have imagined Azula as anything but a powerful firebending prodigy, but now she appeared as anything but that. But when Katara entered her cell, he saw for the first time dried blood on his sister's prison shift. He felt his blood boil. _"Long Feng is gonna pay for this."_

Even though Toph couldn't see, she knew that the princess's condition was bad. Though she had her concerns about what would happen when Azula was finally nursed back to health, she couldn't in good conscience leave the girl in the clutches of Long Feng or the Fire Lord—even if she was just as "bad" as they were.

Just then, Toph sensed two people rapidly approaching. Their footsteps were too light to belong to earthbenders—they definitely weren't the guards she and Sokka had taken out when freeing the generals. She soon recognized them as belonging to the Princess's two companions—Mai and Ty Lee.

"Someone's coming," she alerted Katara and Sokka, as she got into her fighting stance—more thankful than ever that she had discovered metalbending. There was earth surrounding the metal that served as this underground prison, but without her ability to bend metal, there was no way she could utilize it.

As Mai and Ty Lee came around the corner, Toph threw up a metal wall, effectively blocking the assortment of blades flying through the air at her and Sokka and cutting them off from anymore attacks.

"We should tell them that we're helping Azula," he said.

"It won't do any good," Katara explained, her eyes and hands never leaving Azula. "They're the ones that did this to her."

"Huh?"

"They took a trip to Lake Laogai," she replied grimly.

"But I thought that place was destroyed!"

"Apparently not," Toph noted with a bit of sarcasm.

"This is as much as I can do for now," Katara sighed, pulling the water back into her water skin. Toph then bent the metal of Azula's chains off as Sokka caught her as she fell forward. She was still unconscious. Sokka hoped she would stay that way until they got out of here. He was afraid of what would happen if she woke up in his arms.

"I can take these two. Wait inside this cell. Once I create enough of an opening, you guys take the princess out of here and join the others. I'll hold them off," Toph told the siblings. Deciding it was as good a plan as any, Sokka and Katara nodded their agreement.

The metal wall came crashing down, as the earthbender prepared to square off against the assassin and the acrobat.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The battle was fierce, but the tide was beginning to favor the Avatar and his companions. With the arrival of the five Earth generals, Long Feng and his troop of Dai Li were no match.

Soon Katara and Sokka, with an unconscious Fire Nation Princess in his arms, joined the fray. Zuko looked upon his sister with equal parts concern and apprehension. He had taken his uncle's words seriously.

"Where's Toph?" Zuko asked Katara as he narrowly missed a rock flying toward his head before blasting an agent with a stream of fire.

"Fighting off a brainwashed Mai and Ty Lee," Katara replied before knocking back two Dai Li with water jets.

"Brainwashed?"

"It's a technique the Dai Li use to get the opposition to bend to their will," Aang explained as he evaded the crystals launched in his direction.

"It's a kind of hypnosis. It happened to an ally of ours, but it's possible to break it. They just have to be reminded of who they were beforehand," Sokka finished, placing Azula on the ground between himself and Katara before launching his boomerang and taking out a soldier charging toward Iroh's backside.

With those words Zuko was off, determined to save his two childhood friends.

* * *

The earthbender had quickly dispatched the acrobat by bending her hands to the floor while she was attempting a series of front flips in her direction. However, the weapons mistress had managed to hit Toph's left bicep with a shuriken, inhibiting the bender's ability ever so slightly.

Rounding the corner, Zuko saw Mai about to release a stiletto in Toph's direction. Remembering Sokka's words, he shouted out, "Now what you do is try to knock the apple off the other person's head. Like this!" as he blasted a small fireball above Mai's head, careful not to actually hit her.

She froze and turned to look at the source of the bending. "Zuko?" she asked, confused.

Toph shattered the piece of rock that was about to smash into the girl, waiting to see how this would play out. She remembered what had happened with Jet and was hopeful Zuko had somehow broken through the Fire Nation girl's mind.

Zuko saw Ty Lee who had stopped struggling against the metal that bound her and was now staring at him intently.

"Do you remember me?" he asked the gymnast.

"I think so," Ty Lee replied, her confusion now evident.

"Come with us. We can help you remember who you are," Zuko promised the two fire teens. Something having broken in them, the girls hesitantly agreed. Toph released Ty Lee from her metal bindings. The four of them ran back to the main cavern.

"Be careful, Zuko," Toph said under her breath. "Long Feng might have a trigger word that could send them right back into their brainwashed state."

"I wouldn't worry too much about that," he assured her.

* * *

Aang, Iroh, Katara, Sokka, and the generals effectively wore down the Dai Li, and with the return of Zuko and the arrival of Toph, victory was inevitable. Ty Lee and Mai made sure to stay close to Zuko, as they were unsure who else they could trust. Some part of their unconscious mind knew that he would somehow help them make sense of things.

Katara stood protectively over Azula, shielding her from any attacks the agents tried to launch at her. She couldn't help but think this was a strange twist of fate—protecting one of her most ruthless enemies from harm.

Ty Lee's gaze fell upon the fallen princess who laid near the waterbender's feet. Somehow she knew that she was responsible for the state she was in, even though she couldn't remember how she knew the girl or what exactly she had done to her.

With Toph's metalbending skills, the battle with Long Feng and his Dai Li was finally put to rest, enabling the five Earth generals to place them under arrest and regain control over their respective troops.

The fight now over, Zuko was quickly at his younger sister's side, finally taking in the full extent of her condition. "Isn't there something you can do for her?" he asked Katara.

"I've done all I can for now. She was actually in much worse shape than this," she explained. "Can you help me carry her out of here?"

"Of course," he said as he lifted Azula up in his arms.

Aang looked on with some concern. He knew that leaving the Fire Nation Princess here was not an option, but was hesitant to take her with them. Iroh's warm and steady hand on his shoulder brought his attention to the elder firebender. The look he gave Aang assured him that this was the right thing to do for the time being.

* * *

With Long Feng and the Dai Li locked up, Aang, Sokka, Toph, Katara, Zuko, and Iroh flew back to the Eastern Air Temple on Appa. Also along for the trip were Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee.

Mai and Ty Lee were still glued to Zuko's side, while Katara worked on Azula's wounds with the strength of a full moon overhead to aid her. She had discovered several cracked ribs which she was currently focused on healing. Aang came to sit beside his waterbending teacher.

"Are you alright, Katara?" he asked. Sokka, who was holding Appa's reigns, listened in, wondering the same thing about his sister's wellbeing.

"I am now that I'm out of that horrible place. Thank you for getting me out of there," she said, looking up at the whole gang seated on Appa's saddle.

"What did Long Feng do to you?" Sokka asked, anger creeping into his voice.

"I'd rather not talk about it. I healed myself—that's all that matters."

They were silent for several moments, as Katara concentrated on bending water over Azula's ribcage. Finally, she pulled the water away and leaned back against the edge of the saddle, exhaustion taking over.

"So what's the plan?" she asked no one in particular.

"The plan is to go back to the Eastern Air Temple to get the Earth King. From there we'll take him back to Ba Sing Se where he can be reinstated to power. After that, we can start making plans to defend against the Fire Nation's impending attack," Sokka explained.

"Guess I missed a lot in the last few days, huh?"

"You could say that," Iroh said with a smile and Katara couldn't help but return it with one of her own.

"I still need to hear the story of how you two ended up in the group," she said good-naturedly before yawning. "But I think that story will have to wait until I'm more awake."

Moments later, Katara was fast asleep. Aang watched her a little worriedly, having noticed the dried blood on her prison shift just as Sokka had.

* * *

The next morning, Sokka, Aang, and Toph flew back to Ba Sing Se with the Earth King and his pet bear, Bosco, in tow. Zuko and Iroh stayed behind with Mai and Ty Lee to work on completely reversing the effects of the Dai Li's hypnosis. Katara decided to stay at the temple to recover some of her strength and do her part to heal the three Fire Nation girls in whatever way she could.

"Do you think they'll be okay alone at the temple with Azula?" Aang asked Toph and Sokka.

"I wouldn't worry, Aang. She's not exactly in any condition to fight," Sokka assured him.

"But what if she wakes up? What if Mai and Ty Lee join her?"

"Mai and Ty Lee are Zuko's friends too, so I don't think they'll attack him," Toph reasoned. "Relax, Twinkle Toes. With Iroh there, everything will be fine."

* * *

"That sounds like my brother alright," Iroh confirmed after hearing Katara's telling of what she overheard going on in Azula's cell over the last few days. "The only way he'd want her back after this fiasco is to lock her up—just like he tried to do to me and my nephew."

"I just can't believe it. Azula always seemed so… perfect. Untouchable, almost. A natural born prodigy at everything, not just firebending." Zuko shook his head. He had so many conflicting feelings about his sister. Seeing her like this made him realize just how fragile she could be.

* * *

Katara spent the early part of the afternoon doing waterbending sessions on both Mai and Ty Lee in the hopes of healing their minds. Zuko stayed close by while Iroh watched over Azula, in case she were to wake. After Katara's sessions, their memories started to come back to them—including what they had done to Azula.

Mai, who was accustomed to not betraying any emotion, appeared unaffected, but inside she was deeply disturbed by what she had done. While she wasn't squeamish, she didn't think she had it in her to torture anyone—let alone someone she considered a friend. She was just glad that Zuko had been there to help snap her out her haze.

Ty Lee, on the other hand, was extremely upset by what had happened and broke down in tears. Mai attempted to comfort her, knowing that the acrobat needed a shoulder to cry on. Ty Lee appreciated her normally stoic friend's quiet support. Of course Mai could relate. They had done those horrible things to Azula together. For as ruthless as their princess could be, she didn't deserve to be tortured.

* * *

Zuko sat with Mai and Ty Lee, trying to keep their minds off of Azula by playing catch up with them. It had been many years since they had last seen each other. Ty Lee couldn't help but notice that Mai was smiling a lot more than she usually did.

In another room of the temple, Azula rested on a pallet that Katara had placed her sleeping bag on. After her sessions with the princess's friends, she had kept a constant vigil over the firebender. She noticed that the girl's complexion had finally returned to its normal shade and her breathing had improved now that her ribs were healed.

With a fresh pot of tea in hand, Iroh entered the room to find the waterbender deep in thought.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked.

"Not at all," she replied with a smile, gesturing to the seat next to her.

"Would you like some tea?"

"I'd love some."

He poured her a cup.

"So, Iroh, you mind telling me how you and Zuko ended up fighting alongside the Avatar instead of against him?" Katara asked, now finally having the time to actually sit and talk with one of her newest allies.

"Certainly," he replied, taking a sip from his own cup. "Zuko and I had been invited to serve tea to the Earth King, but it turned out that it was Azula who had invited us. It was a trap of course."

Katara realized somewhat guiltily that she was the one who unintentionally informed the Princess that they were in Ba Sing Se.

"I managed to get away, but Zuko decided to stay and fight his sister. He was captured and thrown into the catacombs of the old city. I believe you know that part already.

"I called on your friends for help. We agreed to work together to rescue you and Zuko and then stop Azula. Sokka and Toph went to warn the Earth King about the coup, while Aang and I went to the catacombs. We were a little too late, however. By the time we got down there, you had already been moved and my nephew was completely encased in crystal. Aang released him.

"Zuko has been struggling between wanting his father's acceptance and choosing his true destiny. Our time as refugees in the Earth Kingdom really helped to open his eyes, and after some difficult times, he finally chose his destiny. And that was to help the Avatar bring peace to this world."

"What about you?" Katara asked.

"Zuko is like a son to me. I would have supported whatever decision he made, but I feel he made the right one."

* * *

_She felt strong arms wrap around her, gently lifting her up as she stirred from her slumber._

"_Mom?" the sleepy voice mumbled._

"_Shh… go back to sleep, Azula. You fell asleep in Zuko's room," a warm, sweet voice replied._

"_Ursa, what are you doing?" a deep voice boomed down the hall, moving closer._

"_Taking my daughter to bed."_

"_You coddle them far too much," he said disapprovingly. "I expect my children to be strong."_

Katara watched Azula begin to toss and turn in her sleep. With equal parts trepidation and hope, she wondered if now was the time the Fire Nation Princess would finally return to consciousness.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"_You were named for your grandfather, Azulon," he explained to her shortly after she discovered her own firebending ability at the tender age of three. "I knew that you were special the day you were born—and your very name needed to be a reflection of that. You have an incredible gift. You will not only be a great firebender like your grandfather, but you will be a great Fire Lord."_

_She didn't understand everything her father said, but she did know that she had never seen him so pleased with her before._

"_I can guide you to greatness, Azula. You just have to do exactly as I show you, understand?"_

_She nodded and he smiled at her, taking her by the hand and leading her into what would be first of countless training sessions._

_--_

"_Again," he commanded._

_The young prodigy's body was growing tired, but she knew she couldn't stop until she had the form down perfectly. Her brother hadn't advanced through this set nearly as quickly and as well as she had, and he had already been swept away by their mother for his evening meal. The princess remembered the look of disgust directed at him, and she didn't want to see the same look of disappointment cast upon her._

_Taking a deep breath, she readied herself to go through the movements yet again._

"_Ozai, don't you think that's enough training for today?" her mother's voice interrupted before she could begin._

"_What did I tell you about interrupting my private training sessions with Azula?" he replied, his eyes narrowing at his wife. "Your pampering will only hold her back. You've already made my son too soft for his own good."_

_Ursa stood tall as she locked eyes on Ozai, but her gaze began to waver ever so slightly._

_Now five years old, the princess looked back and forth between her parents, unsure of what to do next._

_Finally, her mother relented and turned to leave the room. A satisfied smile graced her father's lips as he turned to look at her._

"_Again, Azula."_

_--_

"_Please, Father, I only had the Fire Nation's best interest at heart! I'm sorry I spoke out of turn!" her brother pleaded, but the Fire Lord continued to advance on him._

"_You will fight for your honor."_

_Stricken, the prince prostrated on the floor before their father. "I meant you no disrespect. I am your loyal son."_

"_Rise and fight, Prince Zuko!"_

"_I won't fight you."_

"_You will learn respect, and suffering will be your teacher."_

_She watched, knowing full well what would happen. He was proving yet again how weak he was—just like their father had said—but she couldn't believe that he wouldn't even defend himself. She looked on as his face was burned and scarred, his screams echoing in her ears._

"_You have shown a shameful weakness by refusing to fight. As punishment, you are henceforth banished. The only way you can return with your honor is when you capture the Avatar."_

_The disgraced prince had left—the Fire Lord not even bothering to see him off. Now it was just father and daughter._

"_Your brother is a failure. I hope you never give me reason to be disappointed in you," he said in a low tone that held a dangerous edge._

Azula began to wake up then, the dream form of her father and his warning almost forcing her back to consciousness. Every part of her body ached and she felt incredibly weak. Then she remembered her predicament.

Expecting to feel the shackles of cold, unforgiving metal against her wrists and ankles, the princess was surprised to find that she was instead lying down on something soft with nothing inhibiting her movement. Slowly, she opened her eyes, only to find that she was no longer in a holding cell. She was aware of the presence of someone nearby and cautiously turned her head in that direction.

To her surprise, that someone was the Water Tribe girl, whose eyes were filled with something Azula couldn't quite identify in her hazy state. All she knew was that it wasn't a look of fear.

"How are you feeling?" the waterbender asked. Upon hearing the girl's voice, Azula now recognized the emotion in Katara's eyes. It was concern. And not concern that the firebender would burn her to a crisp, but concern for her wellbeing.

To have her enemy caring for her confused Azula, to say the least, but she was careful to stay on guard. It could just be another one of Long Feng's tricks. She knew the water girl had been in the cell next to hers.

"Where am I?" Azula rasped out, not answering Katara's question.

"The Eastern Air Temple. You're safe now, don't worry."

Azula still eyed her warily.

"My brother and my friends rescued us from Long Feng's prison holding," Katara explained, trying to put the girl's mind at ease. She knew that after having been tortured, especially by two people she trusted, that the princess probably assumed this to be another trick. She was careful not to mention Mai or Ty Lee just yet.

"Here, you need to drink some water." Katara offered Azula a cup. Grudgingly, she pushed herself up to sit, finding that it took quite a bit of effort. As she took the cup the waterbender offered, their fingers lightly touched for a moment. The princess was surprised at how warm the other girl's hands were.

She took a sip, enjoying the feeling of the cool liquid pouring down her throat. She looked down at her body, which she saw was no longer in that tattered prison shift, but now instead was covered by a Water Tribe kimono. The princess reasoned it must have belonged to Katara. Normally, she was a stickler about her appearance, and wearing peasant's clothing would be disgraceful, but she decided it was an improvement over the prison garb she had been wearing.

Azula noticed the bruises and cuts on her body were fading. There were a few wrappings over the deeper wounds and over her wrists and ankles. She realized that the waterbender had done all this for her—had used her healing ability to help her.

"Why are you helping me?" Azula asked, her eyes narrowing at Katara.

"I couldn't leave you behind," she replied, looking at the girl with compassion. Katara always did try to see the good in others.

The sound of someone clearing their throat brought both girls' attention to the doorway. There they saw Iroh entering the room with a tray of food in his hands.

"Glad to see you are awake, my niece," he greeted Azula. Normally he knew to be careful around her, but right now she was in a vulnerable place—more so mentally than physically. Besides, Iroh wasn't the kind of man to hold grudges. "Would you ladies care for some dinner?"

"I'd love some," Katara replied with a smile as her stomach grumbled.

Azula stayed silent, putting the pieces together in her mind. She really wasn't all that surprised to see her uncle—after all, she had already seen the Fire Nation traitor and enemies working together once before. She wondered where Zuko was. Last she had seen him was when she casually dismissed his Agni Kai challenge, and had the Dai Li take him prisoner.

Iroh placed a plate of food near Azula's bedside. "You should eat something. It will help you regain your strength."

Reluctantly, the firebender took the plate and slowly began to eat the meal her uncle had prepared, not really paying much mind to what it even was. She was too busy keeping an eye on Iroh and Katara, watching them closely to see if they would try anything.

Katara couldn't help but notice that there was something different about Azula. Normally, she was incredibly self-assured and arrogant. Now she was hesitant and on the defensive, which made sense, the waterbender realized. The circumstances of the last four days would do that to anyone. And now she was alone with people she didn't trust, and she was too weak to defend herself should they attack her.

The trio finished their meal in silence. Iroh quietly left the two girls, taking their now empty plates to wash them. He knew that Azula was in no condition to fight and that Katara was more than capable of defending herself. He also had a feeling that perhaps this waterbender could help set his niece on the right path.

Once they were alone, Azula looked at Katara. "Do you know what happened to my friends, Mai and Ty Lee?" Her voice was a little stronger, but the commanding tone it normally carried wasn't there. And there was a touch of fear mixed in as well.

The question seemed a little vague to Katara. Did the princess mean their hypnosis or their actual whereabouts? She decided to answer to both of those possibilities.

"They were brainwashed by Long Feng. The Dai Li uses a kind of hypnosis to control people's minds. Zuko helped to break it and with my waterbending, I was able to reverse the effects. They're here at the temple." Katara saw Azula flinch a little bit. "And they are worried about you," she added in a softer voice, and the firebender relaxed slightly with that last tidbit of information.

"So, Zuzu's here too, I take it," she sighed, propping herself against the wall her pallet rested along. Azula had determined that Katara was no threat to her for the time being. "And what of your other companions?"

"They're in Ba Sing Se with the Earth King. They should be back later tonight."

Azula nodded in response and closed her eyes.

Normally, this would have been an opportunity the Fire Nation Princess would have seized. The Avatar and the two traitors her father had ordered her to capture all here in one place. But she didn't have the strength or the means with which to carry that out at the moment or anytime soon. Unlike Zuko, she always planned ahead.

"_Right, and see how well that worked out for you last time,"_ Azula thought to herself. _"You failed."_

The dream that had pushed her from her sleep was still very clear in her mind. _"I hope you never give me reason to be disappointed in you,"_ his words echoed in her thoughts.

Katara watched Azula with some concern and wondered what would happen once she regained her strength, which from the looks of things, would be awhile longer. She had always thought Zuko to be a horrible person, but that had changed recently. She got a glimpse of how he suffered—burned and scarred by his own father, banished until he could regain his honor, and losing his mother. Maybe Azula wasn't so horrible either.

* * *

After looking around the temple, Iroh finally found the three Fire Teens. They had climbed to one of the upper floors to watch the sunset over the Earth Kingdom. The acrobat was lying prone with her hands propped up in her hands. A few feet to her right sat the banished prince and the assassin. Iroh smiled to himself when he noticed how close Mai was sitting to his nephew. He knew that having companionship after living so long at sea and as a refugee was just what Zuko needed. He hoped that this worked out better than the time he had tried to set his nephew up with Jin.

He stood and watched along with the group before finally breaking the silence.

"Princess Azula is awake."

* * *

"Azula?" Ty Lee's hesitant voice called out from the doorway. The princess looked up from the pallet she was still seated on to see both Mai and Ty Lee standing there. The waterbender had stepped out to do some healing on herself, leaving Azula alone.

She remembered what Katara had told her about the hypnosis, and she had even seen it in her friends' eyes that something wasn't right about them while she was in prison. But despite learning that their minds had returned to them, she had to see for herself that the effects of the brainwashing had been completely reversed.

The two girls entered then, and in a gesture the princess had not seen from them since they first started traveling together, they prostrated before her. They obviously regretted what they had done, even if it had been against their will. And Azula could plainly see that they were back to their old selves.

"You know we're way past that," Azula remarked, trying to lighten things up a bit. She didn't want to be reminded anymore than they did of what happened, but it was still something they needed to resolve—for the sake of their friendship.

Now sitting on her knees, Ty Lee's worry was written all over her face. Azula had gotten quite good at reading Mai—it was all in the eyes—and she could see the concern in them.

"Azula, I'm so sorry for what I did to you. I didn't mean to do it. Long Feng did something do our minds." There were tears in the acrobat's eyes now. "He told us it was an order from the Fire Lord, and that we had to carry it out."

Azula's eyes widened as a feeling of panic began to rise in her. _"Long Feng was lying, remember?"_ she reminded herself and calmed down.

"I'm sorry as well, Azula," Mai's added, her voice betraying just a hint of emotion, which was not lost on the princess.

She nodded at her companions, which was as good a reaction as either of them could have hoped for. Azula wasn't known to be much of a talker when it came to sensitive topics like this.

"Once I'm fully recovered, we need to leave here and regroup. With Iroh and Zuko now fighting alongside the Avatar, we'll need more support. I'm sure my father will be happy to provide us with what we need."

"Did you not just hear what Ty Lee said? We were carrying out the Fire Lord's orders when we tortured you."

"No, you were carrying out Long Feng's orders," Azula said in that tone that left no room for an argument. And with that, the two girls were dismissed.

Ty Lee was used to following Azula's orders without question, but Mai knew there were ways to get around what the princess asked of her. She had a feeling doing that was going to get trickier. She was starting to have mixed feelings about the "mission" for a multitude of reasons.

Mai knew better than to say anything, but she never liked Fire Lord Ozai—a feeling that grew even more after Zuko's Agni Kai. And even Ty Lee, who never liked to think badly about anyone, in her own private thoughts, admitted that the Fire Lord gave her the creeps.

Even though it was Long Feng and his Dai Li who had brainwashed them, they suspected that the order had indeed actually come from the Fire Lord. It wouldn't make sense for Long Feng to torture Azula if he intended to exchange her for Ba Sing Se's safety—unless it was what Fire Lord Ozai wanted.

"Azula is in serious denial," Mai said quietly to the acrobat after she and Ty Lee had exited the room.

"I know," Ty Lee sighed. "At least she doesn't hate us for what we did, though."

Both girls chose not to voice their other thoughts, knowing deep down that no matter what choice they made now, it would be a difficult one. They could either continue to follow Azula or stay loyal to the Fire Nation—which really meant the Fire Lord—both of which meant turning on the people who had helped them when they had needed it most. While they no longer saw Zuko and Iroh as traitors or Aang, Sokka, Toph, and Katara as enemies, the girls weren't quite sure how they should view them now.

* * *

The remnants of pain from the whipping finally gone, Katara got up from the pool she had been soaking her body in to heal herself. Getting dressed, she began to head back to the temple room to check in on Azula.

She had seen Mai and Ty Lee leaving the princess's room—but they had not seen her—and overhead their comments about Azula being in denial. The waterbender wondered what they were talking about.

When she entered the temple room, she found Azula fast asleep on the pallet. There was nothing more Katara could do to heal the firebender. Everything else was up to her, and she needed her rest. Aang and the others would be arriving soon.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

It was late evening when Aang, Sokka, and Toph arrived back at the temple. The trip had gone smoothly, and now that the government had been restored to some semblance of what it should be, the Earth Kingdom could focus on preparing for the Fire Nation's invasion. Thousands of soldiers, hundreds of tanks, and two more drills had been spotted five miles from the city, where the invasion force had made camp. In the morning, they would begin their attack at the outer walls of Ba Sing Se—just as the sun was rising.

They didn't have any time to waste and needed to gather everyone so they could immediately head back to the capital. Sokka had sent word to his father, Chief Hakoda, and his warriors to meet them in the Earth Kingdom capital as soon as they were able. From there they could organize a strategy to more effectively combat the ever-growing Fire Navy presence in the Earth Kingdom's eastern waters and supply the Water Tribe warriors with reinforcements.

The trio found Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee sitting around a small fire listening to Iroh play his pipa. Seeing that they had returned, the former general brought the song he was playing to a close.

"Hey, guys," Sokka greeted them. They all replied likewise, and Ty Lee flashed him a flirtatious smile as she did. He blushed before continuing. "We need to head back to Ba Sing Se now. The Fire Nation military will be at the outer wall at dawn. Is everyone okay to travel?" he asked, looking pointedly at Mai and Ty Lee.

They nodded, but both girls felt unsettled. They hoped the gang didn't expect them to actually fight against their own nation.

"Where are Katara and Azula?" Aang asked.

"Azula's asleep in one of the temple rooms. Katara is probably with her," Zuko replied.

"Thanks. I'll go get them. Make sure to have your stuff packed up and ready to go. We need to leave as soon as possible."

Aang then headed over to the temple room he had shown Katara to the night before. There he found his waterbending teacher seated on a chair next to the sleeping pallet, gazing intently at her charge.

"Hey, Katara," he said softly, not wanting to wake Azula.

"Hey, Aang," she replied, looking up at him with a smile. "How was your trip?"

"It was good. But we have to go back to Ba Sing Se now. Are you okay to leave? Is your back…"

"It's fine," Katara cut him off, not wanting to talk about it. "And yes, I'm okay to leave now. Let me just wake up Azula."

"Wait, before you do that, can I talk to you out here for a minute?"

"Sure, Aang," she agreed, getting up and following him out the door. "What's up?"

"I don't have a good feeling about taking Azula with us. We all know how vicious she can be—I mean, she's been relentlessly hunting us for the last few months. But that's when she's been collected and calculated. Iroh claims that she is actually pretty unstable underneath it all."

"But Iroh seems to be okay with Azula being with us right now, doesn't he?"

"That's true, he does. Has she woken up yet?"

"Yes, she was awake for about an hour earlier this evening."

"Did you talk to her at all?"

"A little bit. Why?"

"How did she seem to you?"

"Tired and weak, but she didn't seem unstable—more like she was on the defensive, but I think that's because she wasn't in control of what was happening. For spirits' sake, she was just tortured. It's more than a little understandable."

"I think we still need to be careful. Both Zuko and Iroh warned us that she's a skilled liar and manipulator."

"Well, we can't leave her here. She's still in bad shape."

"Yeah, I know that. I wasn't thinking that we should leave her. Just that we should be careful is all."

"Look, how about we just keep Azula and even Mai and Ty Lee out of all discussions related to our preparations for the Fire Nation's attack?"

"That's probably the best solution for now," he agreed with a sigh. "Keep an eye on her."

"I will, Aang," she promised. "Don't worry."

* * *

The trip back to Ba Sing Se was made in relative silence, as the gang was careful not to divulge too much information around the three Fire Nation girls. Once they arrived at their destination, plans could be discussed before resting up for the morning's battle.

Despite the pain she was in, Azula tried to carry herself with as much dignity as possible. The feeling of weakness was what really bothered her most of all, but she did feel better knowing that Mai and Ty Lee were with her—and, most importantly, back to their normal selves. But eventually exhaustion took over and she couldn't stop herself from slumping against the side of Appa's saddle. Ty Lee and Mai were on either side of her, while Katara sat directly across from them, keeping a close eye on the princess.

Azula noticed Katara watching her. She figured that the waterbender was doing so to make sure she wouldn't make any moves to harm the Avatar who was napping beside her, but soon came to realize that the girl was making sure that _she_—the Fire Nation Princess—was okay. _"It doesn't make any sense. How could she be so weak, so foolish to look after an enemy?"_

Normally, Azula would be one to exploit such a weakness, but something felt all wrong inside her. She had tried to exploit Long Feng and the Dai Li's weakness—their susceptibility to corruption—but it had backfired on her, and she had paid dearly for it. _"Maybe you don't know people as well as you think you do... Since when have you ever doubted yourself?"_

She knew she needed to figure out a way to capture the Avatar, Iroh, and Zuko. Her father wouldn't accept anything less. But she was just too tired to scheme at the moment.

For her part, Katara had grown awfully curious about Princess Azula. Her heart had gone out to the girl when they were in prison together, and she could only imagine the effect that experience had on the prodigy. It was traumatic enough for the waterbender, and she hadn't even endured a fraction of what the firebender had. The ever-present malicious glint in her amber eyes had been tempered somewhat and was now slightly clouded by doubt.

Iroh had noticed it too, but Zuko was just a bit on edge. He didn't want his sister to jeopardize what they were trying to accomplish—trying to end the war and usher in an era peace. The Fire Lord had an even tighter emotional hold on her than he ever did on the now banished prince.

* * *

"The Fire Lord is leading the attack on Ba Sing Se," General How informed everyone. "Avatar Aang, this is your chance to not only win the battle, but win the war."

"I'm surprised the Fire Lord himself would be here and not stay in the Fire Nation capital," the Earth King commented.

"He doesn't want to take anymore chances. He believes the reason Ba Sing Se, and therefore the Earth Kingdom, hasn't fallen is because a Fire Lord has never been the one to lead the siege," Iroh explained.

"How do you know?" Toph asked.

"He told me so when I returned from my 600-day siege."

"So what's the plan, General How?" Sokka asked.

"Aang, Katara, and Toph should focus on taking out the drills first, one at a time, while General Sung and the Terra team fight off the foot soldiers and those in tanks."

"Taking those drills down won't be as easy this time. There are sure to be soldiers inside it who will be waiting for us," Katara realized.

"Sweetness is right," Toph added. "I have a better idea. Let me handle the drills and you guys take care of everyone else."

"How are you going to take down the drills yourself?" General Kuo asked.

"Easy," she flashed a wide grin at him. "Metalbending."

The five generals chuckled, recalling how the girl had freed them from their cells. It was nothing short of amazing, and they all agreed that she was the greatest earthbender they had ever met.

"Alright, so it's settled. General Kuo and I will have our troops cut off either side of the Fire Nation's advances so they can't spread out along the outer wall. Generals Han and Jing will be waiting on the eastern end of the city for Chief Hakoda's arrival. From there they can work together to take out the Fire Naval Fleet."

* * *

Even though the three Fire Nation girls hadn't been permitted to attend the war meeting and were placed in a room of the palace that was heavily guarded, they still caught wind of the fact that the Fire Lord was leading this attack himself.

"We can't just stay here and do nothing while our soldiers are trying to get through those walls. We are three of the most skilled fighters the Fire Nation has," Azula said.

"We've already tried taking over the city from the inside out… that didn't work out so well," Ty Lee noted worriedly.

"Besides, if you haven't noticed, we're pretty much under house arrest here. Everyone knows better than to trust us," Mai added.

"I wasn't thinking we should take the city over from the inside out. That obviously didn't work." Azula shuddered a little at the memory. "We just need to bring the Avatar to my father. That will give the Fire Nation the advantage needed to finally win this war."

"Azula…" Ty Lee began. "Mai and I have been thinking. We don't want to keep hunting Iroh and Zuko anymore… or the Avatar and his friends."

"What?" Azula was stunned by her words. _"I must be dreaming."_

"They helped all three of us when they didn't even have to," the acrobat reasoned.

"Convenient of you to tell me this news when I'm in no condition to punish you for what could be considered treason," she said in a low, dangerous tone. "I know we're friends, but I am still your princess."

"Exactly, you are our princess _and_ our friend. And it's in our princess and friend's best interest to stop this chase," Ty Lee replied, undaunted by Azula's threatening tone.

"How could you say that? How could you even _think_ that?" she fumed. "I was sent on this mission by my father—the _Fire Lord_, if you've forgotten."

"We haven't forgotten that, Azula. But things have changed, and I'm not so sure you realize how much," Mai began. "Your father now feels the same way about you as he does Zuko."

Azula just laughed. When she saw that Ty Lee's expression was still grim, she stopped. "You can't be serious, Mai. Zuzu is worthless to my father. He still needs me—needs me so that the Fire Nation can finally claim total victory in this war."

Mai just sighed. She realized there was no talking it into Azula; she'd have to come to terms with this fact in her own time. She just hoped when she did, it wouldn't turn out to be the disaster that was Zuko's Agni Kai.

* * *

"_Are they afraid to fight the Avatar? Zuko and Iroh? They never were before. No, it's not fear. What is it?"_ Azula searched for the answer as she lay in her bed. She should have been angrier about it, but she was simply too tired.

Mai and Ty Lee were serious about no longer aiding her in her mission. Azula knew that right now she had no way of making them do so. She barely had the strength to walk let alone fight or bend. But it made no sense to force them to anyway, she realized. She had to convince them that she was right; otherwise they could become a liability.

She rolled over onto her side and glanced at the pallet across from hers where the waterbender was resting. When the war meeting had ended, everyone was sent off to bed, and she had been split up from Mai and Ty Lee, who were assigned to a room with Toph. It had been decided that Katara would be the one to stay with the princess for two reasons: to continue to keep an eye on her to make sure she didn't try anything and also to make sure she didn't have any setbacks in her recovery.

There were guards positioned throughout the hallways, but not on the balcony, Azula noticed. She figured the earthbenders didn't feel the need to. They didn't think she would try to jump from five stories.

Azula brought her gaze back to Katara. The waterbender felt the girl's eyes on her and turned her head to look at the princess.

"Did Long Feng have you tortured too?" Azula asked her in a neutral tone.

"He once beat up on me pretty good and gave me a whip lashing another time. He said it was revenge," Katara explained. Unlike when Sokka and Aang had asked her about what happened, it didn't bother her to tell Azula. She figured the Fire Nation Princess could relate in some way.

"Revenge?" She suspected the Avatar and his companions had something to do with Long Feng's imprisonment, but she never bothered to explicitly seek out the information before.

"For exposing his treachery to the Earth King. He was stripped of his title and thrown in jail, although the Dai Li stayed loyal to him. I suppose I was also supposed to serve as 'bait' for his trap to catch Aang." She paused for a moment. "I know what you went through was way worse than what I did…" her voice got softer and warmed with compassion. "I'm sorry you had to suffer like that."

Azula couldn't believe what she was hearing, and something about how the waterbender looked at her unnerved her. It reminded her of how her mother used to look at her when she was a small child—like she did in her dream the other night.

"Why would you be sorry? I'm your enemy, remember?" her eyes narrowed at Katara.

"Enemy or not, _no one_ should have to go through something like that."

The Fire Nation Princess continued to scrutinize Katara for a moment before speaking. "It's a wonder you haven't been killed yet."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked indignantly.

"If you keep showing your enemies mercy, it will make you weak."

"It takes more strength to show mercy than it does to kill, Azula."

The princess's head was starting to hurt, and she wasn't really in the mood to argue with Katara. _"She sounds like Iroh, and Iroh is a fool. And a traitor,"_ she thought, although the words were said in her father's voice.

Azula closed her eyes, effectively ending all conversation. Within moments, she was fast asleep.

Katara watched her for a moment, wondering what impact, if any, her words had on Azula.

* * *

Memories of her father's words floated through Azula's dreams.

"_The Fire Nation is superior to all other nations. We are stronger, more intelligent, and more skilled. Firebenders are superior to all benders…"_

"_The most important thing to remember is never to show mercy. It is a weakness and your enemies will exploit it…"_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

It was early morning—almost two hours before dawn—when Katara awoke. She was tired and hadn't slept nearly enough, but she knew that today's battle was just as important as the siege at the North Pole. That thought alone was enough to shake off any sleepiness she felt.

The waterbender looked over at the other sleeping pallet and saw that the princess was still asleep, as she should have been Katara thought. Moving toward a small basin, she quickly washed herself up before slipping into her traditional Water Tribe clothes. Moving back over to the bed, she sat down to pull on her boots, chasing away any thoughts of fear about what could happen today.

The princess began to stir from her slumber then. She opened her eyes to see Katara rising up to stand from her bed.

"Oh, you're awake. How are you feeling?" Katara asked, wanting to know if there was any improvement of her condition.

"I'd like to see my brother before everyone leaves. Can you ask him to come by?" Azula asked instead, once again completely ignoring Katara's question, just as she had at the Eastern Air Temple. She was beginning to feel stronger, but she didn't plan on letting anyone in on that if she could help it.

"Sure, I'll ask him," Katara agreed.

Azula nodded before closing her eyes once more, and the waterbender took her leave.

Katara arrived at the palace gates to see Generals How and Kuo with Iroh, Zuko, and Aang. General Sung was already at the wall with all three generals' troops as planned. Once Sokka and Toph got there, they would all fly to the outer wall on Appa.

"Good morning," Katara greeted everyone solemnly.

"Let's hope it turns out to be a good one," General How replied.

"Zuko, Azula wants to see you before we leave," Katara informed him. He shot a worried glance at Iroh before heading back into the palace. Aang and Katara noticed it, and they both realized that they didn't really understand the nature of Zuko's relationship with his younger sister.

"_Azula always lies,"_ he repeated in his mind, mentally preparing himself for whatever she might throw his way.

* * *

"Hello, Azula," Zuko greeted his sister, who was now sitting upright on her bed—back straight as an arrow.

"Hello, Zuko." The use of his actual name was enough to raise a red flag in the prince's mind.

"Katara told me you requested to see me. What do you want?"

"Are you really going to fight alongside the Avatar?"

"I am," he replied simply. "It's where I belong."

"I expected this kind of treachery from Uncle, but not you, Zuko. You're a lot of things, but you're not a traitor, are you?"

Zuko looked at Azula. His eyes wandered over the faint cuts and bruises that marred the skin that was visible to him. Unconsciously, he touched the scar on his own face and closed his eyes. He knew he had made the right decision. Iroh was more of a father to him than Ozai ever was.

"I can see that you're still angry. You really think fighting for the enemy against your own country—your own family—will help you sleep better at night?" Azula's voice was sweet, but Zuko knew better.

"You belong at Father's side," she continued on. "Together as a family we can, once and for all, claim total victory for the Fire Nation in this war. Help me bring the Avatar to him, and you will have your honor restored. You will have Father's love. You will have everything you ever wanted."

"You have no idea what it is that I want," Zuko replied.

"Do you?" Azula shot back.

"I do."

"Then why are you so angry?"

"I still have issues, Azula. Not everything is perfect, and I doubt it ever will be. But at least now I have a chance to do the right thing and be around people who actually care about the good of the world. Uncle cares for me the way Father should have but never did. But I'm still angry because…" he trailed off, realizing he was sharing far too much with Azula than was probably safe to. But then again, things were different now. She wasn't daddy's little girl anymore, even if she didn't want to admit that to herself.

"Because of what?" Azula asked, growing frustrated.

"Because of what he did to our family," he finished softly, his eyes again falling on her bandaged wrists.

"You're so pathetic, Zuzu," Azula brushed him off.

"Goodbye, Azula," Zuko said sadly as he took his leave.

Turning to the guards nearest his sister's room, he advised them to keep a close eye on her.

* * *

The Fire Nation army was prepared for attacks on the drill and had hundreds of troops on the ground to counter any attempts to stop it. The Avatar's presence had been anticipated, and Fire Lord Ozai sent his top firebenders along with the Yu Yan archers to specifically go after him. While he ideally wanted the Avatar brought to him alive, if he were killed now there would be plenty of time for the Fire Nation to win the war. After all, Sozin's comet was mere months away.

While Aang's firebending still had a ways to go, his airbending skills enabled him to easily evade the attacks sent his way. Katara and Iroh made sure to stay nearby in order to take out the soldiers and archers targeting their friend.

Zuko and Sokka stayed close to Toph, and along with the Terra Team, created enough space for Toph to work. The schematics Sokka obtained when Azula tried to drill through the wall definitely came in handy. With his guidance, Toph focused on bending specific points on the drill. This weakened the structure enough so that it eventually collapsed in on itself, trapping the soldiers inside.

"One more to go!" Toph exclaimed. "Let's take that hunk of metal down!"

Unfortunately, the second drill had started to breach the wall and was almost a half-mile from where they stood. Bending a slab of stone, Toph propelled herself, Sokka, and Zuko up to the top of the wall. A stream of arrows came flying toward them, but Zuko easily took care of that by incinerating them with a stream of fire.

"How are we going to get to the other drill in time?" Zuko asked.

"The old-fashioned way. Run!" Sokka yelled and all three broke into a dead run, as the Terra Team on top of the wall provided them with effective cover.

Aang, Iroh, and Katara were doing their best to stop the soldiers from getting into the hole that the second drill had now created. General How's earthbenders effectively disabled the tanks that tried to roll in, but it was becoming more laborious as time went on.

"Please hurry, Toph," Aang said under his breath before throwing up yet another earth shield to block the arrows soaring in.

"Looks like you guys could use a little help," Sokka called out as he, Zuko, and Toph made landing beside their friends.

"You think?" Katara noted sarcastically, as Toph went to work on the drill.

The drill continued to move through the wall, and the soldiers inside the machine began to pour out of it. But that didn't stop the metalbender from working on weakening the structure. Satisfied that it would do, the gang made their way inside the wall to aid the Terra Team who was trying to push back the flood of Fire Nation soldiers now within the outer wall of Ba Sing Se.

* * *

"I'm worried, Mai. I don't want to be a traitor, but I feel like by doing the right thing, we're going to be marked as such," Ty Lee said. Mai noticed the acrobat had been unusually still during the course of the day.

"Neither do I. It was one thing to hear about the war growing up in the Fire Nation, but being out here in the Earth Kingdom, and actually spending time with the Avatar and his friends… it's not like I thought it was."

"Exactly! Our 'enemies' aren't all that different from us."

"I guess this is what I get for complaining about being bored all the time," Mai commented dryly. "What a headache."

* * *

"Fools and traitors, all of them," Azula muttered to herself. Realizing that she was wasting precious time in this room, she decided that she needed to figure out a way to escape the palace and get outside of Ba Sing Se. From there, she could get what she needed from the Fire Nation to complete her mission.

* * *

"I don't understand, Iroh. I thought the Fire Lord was supposed to lead this attack," Aang wondered aloud as he encased yet another Fire Nation soldier in rock.

"He is leading it. From the comfortable confines of the Fire Nation's war camp. He's close enough where he can give direct orders but far enough away to prevent him from falling in battle."

"That seems like a cowardly way to 'lead,'" Toph noted.

"No one ever said my brother was a great leader. He's just a man who lusts after power."

"Well, there's some good news," Sokka chimed in. "The sun is setting. And I don't know about you guys, but I could really use a break."

No sooner had Sokka said those words, the Fire Nation halted their attack. They had managed to capture a large section of the Agrarian Zone, much to the Earth Generals' dismay.

"Avatar Aang," General Sung called out as he walked closer to the group. "Thank you for your assistance today. All of you. We'll need your help again tomorrow. But for now, please get some much deserved rest."

"Where's Katara?" Zuko asked, realizing that she was the only one from their party not present.

"I saw her helping some fallen earthbenders earlier," Aang said. "She's probably still healing them. Let me check. I'll be right back."

Aang then rode on an air scooter further down an unoccupied section of the outer wall to find Katara working on healing several wounded soldiers.

"Hey, Katara." Aang looked at her and noticed that while she appeared tired, she hadn't been injured at all in battle.

"Hey, Aang," she replied, sitting back on her heals, having done all she could for the particular soldier she was healing in the makeshift infirmary.

"We're heading back to the palace on Appa soon."

"I'm going to stay here awhile longer to help. I'll take the monorail back later tonight."

A nearby earthbender groaned in pain from the burns he had received in battle earlier.

"I know they need you Katara, but try to make sure you get some rest as well. You need to take care of you too."

She smiled at him, touched by his concern. "I'll try."

* * *

Katara's eyes started to glaze over. All the suffering she had to see today threatened to undo her, but she knew she had to hold herself together for the sake of these warriors who fought alongside her.

A nearby healer noticed the look on Katara's face and realized she needed a break. Getting her to go back to the palace was out of the question. She wouldn't in good conscience go just yet. "Katara, we need more healing herbs. Can you go and fetch some?" he asked, knowing that was the only way to get her outside.

"Of course," she nodded and headed out to the section of the Agrarian Zone that contained the medicinal herbs needed to stop pain and prevent infection from spreading in the wounded soldiers. This area was closer to the western edge of the wall, farther from the battleground, which had taken place at the south end of Ba Sing Se. Since the Earth Kingdom military had focused most of its efforts and, therefore, manpower to stopping that attack, the guards were sparse in this part of the city.

As Katara was finishing gathering the necessary herbs, she noticed a hooded figure along the bottom edge of the outer wall. Although it was dark, she could make out the edges and realized the person was no bigger than she was. Suspicious, Katara discreetly moved closer.

The hooded figure looked around then, and having found a section of the wall that was unguarded got into a fighting stance. Suddenly, the wall was blasted with an intense bolt of lightning. The figure fell to the ground immediately after delivering the highly concentrated blow of energy that had created a hole just large enough for them to get through.

Katara immediately realized that the person at the wall was Azula. She glanced up at the walls, but saw that no guards were present to have heard the breaking of rock. Still hundreds of feet away, she continued to move closer, but staying on guard just in case.

Azula's strength was still not what it normally was, and it had taken an enormous amount of energy to climb down from the balcony of her room undetected. She couldn't use any bending, otherwise it would have drawn attention to her. She managed to stowaway on the monorail that came to the outer ring before walking in the shadows along the wall, looking for the ideal place to break it open with her lightning. All that effort had momentarily sapped her, and she knew she wasn't exactly fit to travel, but she had to try.

Slowly coming to her feet, she crawled through the wall before coming out on the other side of it. Moving with silent precision, she pushed through any pain she still felt from her imprisonment and began to head south.

Katara had just made it through the wall herself when she saw the direction Azula was headed in. Right toward the Fire Nation camp. Without thinking, Katara began to follow her.

* * *

"Fire Lord Ozai, someone is heading toward our camp. It appears to be Princess Azula."

The Fire Lord frowned.

"What are your orders, my lord?"

"Escort her to my tent," he replied. "And make sure no one else is with her."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Katara watched as Azula got closer to the Fire Nation's camp. She sighed to herself, realizing that she had been too idealistic in thinking the girl might eventually fight on their side as Zuko had come to, or at least stop fighting against them as Mai and Ty Lee had.

Just as she was about to turn back, she noticed several soldiers surround the prodigy. It was an escort, she realized, but something was off about the way they were behaving around their princess.

Suddenly, two soldiers roughly grabbed her arms and effectively pinned them behind her back, before leading her toward the center of camp—to the Fire Lord's tent. It was easy to spot. It was the largest and most ornate, and was seated right in the middle of their camp.

A bad feeling came over Katara as Zuko's face flashed through her mind. _"I have to get her out of there."_

However, getting to the Fire Lord was no easy task. There were soldiers everywhere and the tent itself was heavily guarded. Katara was determined to find a way.

* * *

"Leave us," the Fire Lord ordered the guards, as they finally released Azula. Clearly thrown off by her encounter with her own soldiers, she began to seriously consider Mai's words to be true. _"Things have changed."_

The princess prostrated on the floor in front of her father. Getting up from his throne, he walked down to Azula, fixing a hard glare on her. "What are you doing here?"

"I know where the Avatar is, as well as Iroh and Zuko, but I need some…"

"What are you doing in my presence without them?" he cut her off. "I sent you on a mission and I expected it to be carried out. It was simple: capture Zuko and Iroh. Then you took it upon yourself to capture the Avatar, which you should have been able to achieve more easily than Zuko. But attempting to take down Ba Sing Se was _not_ what I ordered you to do. I told you from the very beginning to do _exactly_ as I said.

"You disappointed me, Azula," his voice grew harsher. "I warned you about that, and I thought your brother served as an excellent example of what happens when one disappoints me.

"I do not yield. I do not compromise. You should know that better than anyone," he seethed. "You failed your nation by putting yourself in a position to be outwitted and captured by Earth Kingdom scum. And you put me in a position where I might have had to compromise."

"But, Father…"

"I can't believe you have the gall to show your face after such a _failure_. I see that you've learned nothing about what happens when you disobey and disrespect me. It's such a shame. I thought you were smarter than your brother. Suffering was his teacher and it was yours as well. I ordered that punishment for you in Ba Sing Se," he spat out.

Azula felt something in her begin to break. Her whole life she had done exactly as her father said, exactly what he had taught her. She had sacrificed everything for him.

"Long Feng was just a tool. I only wanted you to return home for the same reason I sent you after Iroh and Zuko—to be locked up so you can no longer embarrass me," he growled. "You are no longer worthy to fight beneath me."

The air around the prodigy began to get heated and charged as the Fire Lord continued to speak, indicating the rage that was building up inside her.

"You are a failure to the Fire Nation. You have disrespected the crown. You have embarrassed the royal family. And yet here you are, acting as if you have done nothing to sully your honor. Foolish girl! Your honor has been lost forever. You are a disgrace."

Every word had been like a knife, wounding more than just her pride. It tore at the very fabric of her being.

"Gu—" Before the Fire Lord could finish calling for the guards to come and lock up the fallen princess, he was struck in the chest with a blast of blue fire, knocking him back onto the floor. The armor he wore took the brunt of the hit, doing little more than stun the man momentarily. Quickly getting up to his feet, he glared at Azula, who stared wildly at him, seething with anger.

* * *

The soldier noticed the water he was soaking his hands in was starting to get cooler. Before he realized what was happening, his entire upper body was encased in ice. To shout for help would have been useless—he was trapped in an ice prison. He felt hands at his waist begin to undo the belt that held up his pants and noticed those hands had a decidedly feminine touch. His shirt and armor were already off, as he was busy cleaning himself after his sentry shift.

Katara quickly covered herself in the Fire Nation uniform before placing the armor over her shoulders and the helmet that would hide her identity. It was a little big, but it would do, especially in the darkness of the night.

She began to make her way toward the Fire Lord's tent.

* * *

Ozai and Azula both knew each other's fighting styles inside and out after training together for more than ten years. But now father and daughter—teacher and student—were no longer sparring. This was real, and it tore at Azula's spirit. _"How could he do this? How could he treat me like Zuzu?"_

The physical weakness and pain that had been plaguing Azula was pushed aside by pure primal instinct. Her rage acted as a source of power, but she wasn't as focused as she normally was.

With strong but wild movements, she sent a flurry of firebombs at her father. He countered with several of his own, dispersing the flames Azula sent his way. They matched each other movement for movement, and whether one was on the defensive or offensive, couldn't find an advantage. They were evenly matched.

However, despite the initial surge of strength, the prodigy quickly began to tire, leaving herself open to a streaming blast of fire that hit her squarely in the left side—where she already had two cracked ribs. With a scream, she fell to the ground.

* * *

The soldiers outside the Fire Lord's tent heard the scream of the Princess, but they knew better than to interfere. No one entered their Lord's presence without his permission, and from the sound of things, their presence wasn't required at this time.

Katara heard it as well and realized she was running out of time. The possibility that she was too late wasn't one that she wanted to entertain. Eyes darting around, she looked for a way in.

Noticing a makeshift well about one hundred feet from the left side of the Fire Lord's tent, she began to creep the water toward the guards.

* * *

"Um, excuse me, everyone. But Princess Azula has gone missing," a guard nervously informed the gang—sans Iroh, who was currently meeting with General How.

"Missing?" Sokka exclaimed.

"I know where she went," Zuko realized with a grimace. "Back to my father."

* * *

Azula pushed herself up, gritting her teeth and doing her best to ignore the burning flesh of her side. No sooner was she back on her feet than Ozai sent another wave of fire at her. She managed to evade it by ducking out of the way, but he quickly followed with a blast of flames to her legs.

She could see the second attack coming, but her legs felt like lead, and she couldn't avoid it completely. Flames licked up her right leg and she hissed as it burned her. Her eyes were filled with tears of rage, pain, and something else Azula didn't know what to call—heartache.

Mustering all the strength she had left, she shot a stream of fire at Ozai. He threw up a wall of flame to dissipate the attack, but some of Azula's flames managed to get through his wall and burned his left forearm. He scowled at her.

Azula was panting now, clearly exhausted. Her poor breath control would weaken her bending even more, and she knew it. Ozai, taking advantage of her weakened condition and injuries, sent another fireball toward her. She was too slow to move and it hit her on the right side, once again knocking her to the floor.

The Fire Lord advanced on his daughter with a dark expression overtaking his features.

"You attacked your Fire Lord. Your life is forfeit," he informed her coldly. Azula could barely move at this point, let alone fight. Her mind was spinning.

Charging up for a lightning attack, he pointed his fingers at the princess. Just as the electricity was about leave his fingertips, a sharp pain shot through the Fire Lord's wrists. He briefly noticed two ice daggers lodged in each one, before falling to the floor with a dull thud.

Katara, who had used a water blade to slice through the heavy fabric of the Fire Lord's tent, rushed over to Azula's side only to find that she had gone into shock. The princess didn't quite see her—mentally she was someplace else.

Knowing that she had no time to waste, Katara lifted the firebender up into her arms, careful to avoid the burns that now littered her body. Once she got someplace safer than a Fire Nation war camp, she could see to healing those wounds. But for now, she had to figure out how she was going to get out of here alive. Those ice prisons wouldn't hold the guards forever.

Sparing a glance at Fire Lord Ozai as she exited the side of his tent, Katara noticed he was still breathing—barely. Part of her was glad she hadn't actually killed him, but a righteous anger that had built up since the death of her mother and culminated with the girl in her arms threatened to overtake her.

"_And what did I tell Azula yesterday? It takes more strength to show mercy than it does to kill,"_ Katara reminded herself as her ears caught the sound of a kimodo rhino's snort.

* * *

"Where's Katara?" Aang asked the healer. The gang had stopped by the infirmary to get her assistance in tracking down Azula.

"I sent her to get some medicinal herbs several hours ago. She hasn't returned," he informed them worriedly.

Without delay, Aang was out of there and hopped back on Appa. They made their way to the Agrarian Zone that contained the herbs that Katara had been sent to gather.

"Well, it looks like someone was here recently," Sokka commented, noticing the freshly cut herbs still lying there.

Zuko's eyes examined the wall and narrowed as he saw a hole that could have only been caused by one thing. "Over there," he pointed as he ran toward it. "Azula was here alright."

"Do you think she took Sweetness hostage?" Toph asked.

"Honestly, I don't know," Zuko replied. "But I don't think so. I think it would have taken way too much energy, and she was kind of short on that to begin with."

"Maybe Katara followed her," Aang suggested.

"Maybe. Only one way to find out," Sokka replied as they all climbed back onto Appa to resume their search.

Several minutes later, they saw movement on the ground.

"What is that?" Sokka asked.

"Looks like a kimodo rhino," Zuko explained. "With four more following right behind."

"They're headed right for the outer wall. Are they leading another attack?" Sokka asked.

"No, look. The one in the front is being chased… that's Katara!" Aang realized as they moved closer. "And she's got someone with her. It must be Azula."

"Sokka, take the reigns and fly lower. I'm going in."

"Not without me, Twinkle Toes," Toph said.

"And me," Zuko added.

"No, you guys get Katara and Azula off the kimodo rhino and onto Appa. I'll take care of the rest of them."

Katara saw Appa flying overhead, much to her relief. The Rough Rhinos behind her were gaining and it was only a matter of time before Colonel Mongke would be able to attack her with his firebending. With one arm clutching onto Azula and the other steering her rhino, she had no way to defend herself other than simply outrunning them.

Aang opened his glider and landed in between Katara and the Rough Rhinos. Getting into his stance, he inhaled deeply before sending his arms forward, shooting air blasts from his palms. Ogodei and Yeh-Lu went down along with their rhinos.

Mongke and Kachi rode together on one rhino and Vachir was on the other. They pulled the beasts to a stop and focused on the Avatar, who was now standing in the way of the two girls wanted for an attempt on the Fire Lord's life. Aang spared a glance behind him and saw Zuko taking his sister from Katara, as the waterbender climbed up onto Appa's saddle with Toph's help.

Stomping his feet into the ground, Aang sent a fissure toward the riders tossing them from their mounts. While the Rough Rhinos were down, the airbender made his escape and glided back to Appa.

Upon landing in his bison's saddle, he was met with silence. The sight before him was grim. Azula's sides and legs were covered in burns, and she had passed out from the pain, exhaustion, and emotional trauma of what had just happened.

Zuko tearfully helped pull away Azula's charred clothing. Katara quickly formed a water glove and got to work on healing the burns on Azula's sides, which were the most serious.

Toph and Sokka weren't really sure of what to say as Zuko finally broke down in angry tears. Aang placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, and Katara looked at him with unshed tears of her own.

"She'll be okay, Zuko," she tried to assure him before bringing her attention back down to Azula.

"No, she won't," he replied bitterly. "Her whole world revolved around my father."

--

"_Azula, do you want to play hide and explode with us?" Ty Lee asked the princess._

_Ozai looked disapprovingly at his daughter's young friend's request. Azula noticed._

"_Sorry, Ty Lee, but I have my training session now," she dutifully replied, even though she really wanted to stay out in the courtyard with the nobles' daughters and play longer._

_Ty Lee masked her disappointment well, but couldn't stop the shiver from going down her spine at the look on the Fire Lord's face as he whisked his daughter away._

"_Why did you say you were sorry, Azula?" he asked her. She knew this was a test, but was unsure how to answer._

"_It was an error," she finally said._

"_You are a princess of the Fire Nation. You should never feel you need to apologize for anything. Having to say your sorry means you made a mistake. You're my perfect daughter, Azula. You don't make mistakes."_

_--_

"_You are a failure to the Fire Nation. You have disrespected the crown. You have embarrassed the royal family. And yet here you are, acting as if you have done nothing to sully your honor. Foolish girl! Your honor has been lost forever. You are a disgrace."_

_She saw the lightning coming at her then, piercing her directly in the heart._


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Azula was taken back to the room she and Katara shared at the palace. Katara worked on treating the burns to the best of her ability, while Aang and Zuko sat beside her, looking on with concern. Toph left to get Iroh, and Sokka gone had off to find Mai and Ty Lee.

"I wish I still had the water from the spirit oasis. Azula could really use it, but the Dai Li took it from me when I was moved from the catacombs." Katara sighed. The work she had done with her waterbending would heal the burns enough to prevent nerve damage, but there would definitely be some pain and eventual scarring. She applied a thin layer of ointment to the fallen princess's burns before carefully wrapping them in bandages.

With Zuko's help, Katara put some clean clothes over Azula's body—her old clothes having been burned too much to be wearable. The firebender's skin was hot to the touch, and Katara realized that she had broken out with a fever. Grabbing a cloth, she dipped it in cool water.

"What kind of father would do this to his daughter?" Katara asked, pressing the cold cloth against Azula's face.

"The same one who would challenge his thirteen year old son to an Agni Kai, scar him, and then banish him," Zuko said bitterly. "In some strange way, I almost feel like I'm the lucky one now, not Azula."

An audible gasp could be heard at the doorway, and the trio turned to find Ty Lee and Mai with Sokka right behind them. Rushing to the foot of the bed, Ty Lee covered her mouth with her hand, trying to hold back her tears. Mai wrapped her arm around her emotional friend before looking at Zuko.

"What happened?" Mai asked him.

Before he could answer, Toph, Iroh, and General How arrived. Iroh took in the scene before him and looked upon his niece sadly.

"Prince Zuko, Ladies Mai and Ty Lee. I'm sorry for what happened to your Princess," General How said, surprising the three fire teens. Even though Azula had been a driving force behind the coup that briefly usurped him of his power, he understood the nature of war and the lengths people will go to for their nation. He knew that she was merely a pawn to the Fire Lord, and could only pity the fallen princess now.

"I do have some good news to share with you all. The current battle with the Fire Nation is over. They are retreating at this very moment," he informed everyone. "It seems that the Fire Lord is in serious condition, but is expected to live. They are taking him back to the Fire Nation Capital to recover."

"What exactly happened, Katara?" Aang asked, picking up Mai's train of thought from earlier.

"I saw Azula breaking through the outer wall while I was gathering medicinal herbs and followed her outside the city to the Fire Nation's camp. As she was nearning the camp, soldiers took her captive and brought her to the Fire Lord's tent. I knew it wouldn't end well," she explained grimly.

"I snuck in and disguised myself as a Fire Nation soldier." She gestured down at the clothes she was still wearing. "When I finally got into the Fire Lord's tent, Azula was on the ground and wasn't moving. Ozai was about to strike her down with lightning. I just—I didn't think. I just reacted and sent ice daggers into his wrists."

"That probably short-circuited the attack and redirected the lightning back into his body," Iroh reasoned. "That alone would have been enough to kill a weaker man."

* * *

_Azula pressed her ear up against the wall adjacent to her brother's room._

"_Zuko, please, my love, listen to me. Everything I've done, I've done to protect you. Remember this, Zuko. No matter how things may seem to change, never forget who you are."_

_She ran back to her bed, waiting for her mother to come to her room next. She never did._

Azula half-woke up in a fever-induced delirium. She could make out a figure sitting next to her. "Mother?" she asked weakly.

Katara was surprised to say the least. "No, I'm sorry, Azula," she replied sadly. But Azula didn't hear her words.

"Why didn't you say goodbye? Was I really that much of a monster?" She began to cry before passing back into a feverish sleep.

Katara looked at her for long moments wondering what kind of family life Azula had growing up.

* * *

"_Dad's going to kill you," she said in a sing-song voice before turning serious. "Really, he is."_

"_Ha-ha, Azula. Nice try."_

"_Fine, don't believe me. But I heard everything. Grandfather said Dad's punishment should fit his crime," she explained. Then, imitating Azulon's voice, she continued, "You must know the pain of losing a first born son by sacrificing your own!"_

"_Liar!"_

_She sat on her brother's bed. "I'm only telling you for your own good. I know, maybe you could find a nice Earth Kingdom family to adopt you."_

"_Stop it, you're lying," he replied worriedly, holding his blanket for security. "Dad would never do that to me."_

"_Your father would never do what to you?" their mother's voice cut in as she entered the room. "What is going on here?"_

_Azula looked up at her innocently. "I don't know."_

_Ursa grabbed Azula then. "It's time for a talk," she said, leading her out of her brother's room._

"_What is your father going to do to Zuko?" she demanded, gripping her daughter's arm tightly. Azula flinched slightly. She was used to the scolding of her mother—it was practically a daily occurrence now—but she had never seen her mother so upset before._

_"Nothing," she said, not wanting to betray her father, but also feeling like once again, she was in the middle of her parents' constant bickering. Lately it always seemed to revolve around Zuko._

_"Tell me," she demanded, her eyes boring into Azula._

_"Ask Dad," she finally said and Ursa released her daughter, leaving to confront her husband._

_That was the last time she ever saw her mother._

* * *

Katara spent the early part of the following morning cleaning and re-bandaging Azula's burns. She noticed that her fever was still pretty high and that her body would occasionally shake from chills induced by the fever.

Zuko came by a short while later to check in on his sister. Despite everything she had done to him in the past, he still couldn't find it in his heart to hate her.

"How is she?" he asked quietly.

"Still has a fever. She's having systemic reactions to the burns," Katara explained. "I'm hoping she wakes up soon. She needs to drink something." She regarded Zuko for a moment. "Would you mind watching over her for a little while? I need to get some supplies and grab a quick bite to eat."

"Sure," he replied.

"If she wakes up, try to get her to drink something and call for me right away."

"Okay, I will." His eyes never leaving his sister's body, he added, "Thank you, Katara. I just hope she's as grateful for your help as I am."

* * *

"Zuko, you need a break. Why don't you come with me to get something to eat once Katara gets back?" Mai offered as she entered Azula's room, taking a seat next to the ex-prince. He had been so uptight the last few days and she knew he just needed some time to relax and take his mind off things.

He nodded in agreement, knowing what Mai was doing—and appreciating it. She also needed a break from thinking about the difficult decisions that lay ahead for herself, Zuko realized.

Moments later, Katara returned with some medicines and other supplies. "Has she woken up yet?" she asked.

"No, she hasn't. She's been talking in her sleep though, but I couldn't make out what she was saying."

* * *

_Azula stood before her father, who more a menacing scowl. She watched as a stream of fire was let loose from his hands right at her. She tried to move but found she was frozen to the spot. Overwhelming fear filled her then as the flames hit against her body._

_She opened her mouth to scream as the fire consumed her body, but no sounds would come._

* * *

Katara continued to keep a vigil over the firebending prodigy throughout the morning, doing everything she could to keep her body temperature at a reasonable level. She knew that fevers were important to fighting off infection, but there was a danger of it getting too high.

Azula's sleep had been restless—tossing and turning, mumbling incoherently—but she still hadn't come back to a waking state since late last night. Katara hoped she would soon. She needed to drink something.

* * *

"Hey, cutie," Ty Lee flirted with Sokka, who had just walked into the kitchen looking for something to eat.

"Oh… hey," Sokka replied with a sheepish smile.

"Why don't you come sit with me after you fill your plate?" she suggested, the smile never leaving her face.

Sokka, ever the sucker for a pretty face, happily agreed and went to get some food.

Ty Lee was already seated at a small table with a pile of food in front of her. The restrictions on Mai and Ty Lee had been loosened somewhat, although guards still kept an eye on them.

"Where's your friend?" Sokka asked, taking a seat across from the acrobat and looking around for Mai.

"Oh, she went out for a lunch date with Zuko," she said, looking off dreamily before bringing her gaze back to Sokka. "We should go out sometime," she suggested.

"Uh… I already told you, back in the throne room. I'm kind of involved with someone already."

Ty Lee noticed Sokka's expression turn to one of worry. "Kind of involved?" She assumed his worry had to do with the relationship being on the rocks or something of that nature.

"No, not kind of. I am. It's just that I don't know if she's…" he stopped talking, not wanting to voice his fears, and looked down at his plate. Realization dawned on Ty Lee.

"Wait. I remember now. You told me her name. Suki, right?" Ty Lee had dropped the flirtatious act and had a determined look on her face.

Sokka noticed and nodded, hopeful that Ty Lee knew something of Suki's whereabouts.

"She's alive."

He let out a deep breath, relieved at the news. "Do you know where she is?"

Ty Lee shook her head. "I'm sorry, I don't. After Azula, Mai, and I defeated the Kyoshi Warriors, they were all imprisoned. I don't know what prison holding any of them were sent to. But Azula will know. I doubt she'd tell you anything, but after what happened with her dad…" she grimaced, "maybe she will. But I'm sure I can find out from her."

"Thank you, Ty Lee," Sokka said with a grateful smile.

* * *

_The Fire Lord advanced on his daughter with a dark expression overtaking his features._

"_You attacked your Fire Lord. Your life is forfeit," he informed her coldly._

She screamed as her body spasmed on the bed, her breath coming in deep gulps. Katara looked down worriedly.

Azula began to wake then. Her mind wasn't all there because of the fever and exhaustion, but the pain from the burns on her sides and leg was enough to jar her back to reality somewhat. _"It wasn't just a dream,"_ was her only coherent thought before she moaned in pain.

She heard a warm voice then, speaking to her in hushed tones. It was familiar she realized, as she felt a cool hand on her heated skin.

Azula opened her eyes to see the waterbender sitting beside her bed. "What…" the words faltered at her lips. Her mouth felt like a desert.

Katara gently propped Azula's body up a bit with pillows—if she sat up completely, it would be too painful just yet. Azula didn't resist. She didn't have the strength. The girl brought a cup of water to the princess's lips and slowly tilted it back, allowing the water to flow to her mouth.

This continued for several minutes, as Katara tried to get as much water into Azula as she could. Katara placed her hand over Azula's forehead head again, checking her temperature.

Frowning, she then moved her hands to either side of her face before leaning closer, confusing Azula. She then felt the waterbender's lips against her forehead. _"A more accurate way to gauge a person's temperature,"_ Azula realized. Some part of her enjoyed the contact, but she chalked it up to the fever.

"Well, your fever is getting better at least," Katara said, sitting back. She looked at Azula with a compassion the prodigy had never seen before. The waterbender unconsciously took one of Azula's hands in hers and lightly began to rub her thumb against the back of her hand. It was meant to be a comforting gesture, and the firebender found that it soothed her somewhat.

"I'm so sorry, Azula," Katara said in a soft voice, and in that moment, Azula knew that she was no different from her brother in the eyes of her father.

Azula didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. Never in her most twisted dreams could she have imagined such a fall from grace. And then to have her enemy tend to her wounds and nurse her back to health? Not to mention that she had no idea how she got out of her father's clutches alive. _"Maybe I'm still dreaming."_

She closed her eyes, not wanting to think anymore.

Katara saw a single tear roll down Azula's face.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"Hey, Sweetness. Sokka and Aang wanted me to tell you that your dad just got here," Toph said standing at the doorway of Katara's room. It was now late afternoon.

"That's great, Toph," Katara said, almost sounding annoyed. "Tell my dad if he wants to see me that I'm up here in my room. Azula shouldn't be left alone right now."

"Yeah, I figured as much. I can stay with her, you know," Toph offered.

"I need to do a healing session on her right now anyway."

Toph rolled her eyes, knowing full well Katara was lying. She just didn't know why. All she knew was that Katara sounded upset. "Sure thing, Sugar Queen," she said before walking away.

Azula had heard the two girls' conversation, having just woken up from her slumber. She was now simply laying on her bed with her eyes closed, still fatigued from the battle and fever—which had lowered significantly from the medicine Katara had given her earlier. _"Guess she has issues with her father too. Wonder if he's a bastard like mine turned out to be."_

"Azula, are you awake?"

"Yes," she said, opening her eyes.

"I have some more medicine for you. It will help with the pain and prevent infection."

"Alright," Azula agreed, taking the pills Katara handed her. A short while later, she was fast asleep again.

* * *

_She entered her father's throne room and kneeled before him. She waited until he spoke before speaking or moving._

"_Iroh is a traitor and your brother Zuko is a failure. I have a task for you."_

_She looked up at her father with a cold smile, to see the same expression mirrored back at her._

"_They are an embarrassment to our family's name. Azula, it is up to you. Prove to me your worth as my true heir. I trust that you will not disappoint me."_

* * *

It was late evening when Zuko and Mai came by to check up on Azula. She woke up to the sound of voices speaking. Groggily, she opened her eyes to see her brother and friend speaking with Katara.

Azula once again felt Katara's hands on her face and lips against her forehead. "Your fever is gone," she said, relieved. "That medicine really did the trick."

Katara reached for some water and once again held the cup to Azula's lips. "Here, you need to drink more liquids."

Zuko and Mai stood by watching quietly. Finally, after all the water was gone, Azula turned to look at her brother.

"Don't say it," Azula said, a slight scowl overtaking her features.

"I wasn't going to say anything," Zuko replied.

"I know what you're thinking."

"How are you feeling?" Mai asked. Azula raised an eyebrow weakly at the pair in front of her. She couldn't help but notice how close they were standing to each other.

"Like I was run over by a tank that was set on fire," she said and was met with worried looks from them both. "Don't look at me like that. I don't need your pity."

"We brought you guys some food," Zuko said, ignoring her words and gesturing to the tray he had brought with him—it was now on the nightstand. Azula saw Katara arranging some of it onto a plate. She knew she hadn't eaten in a day, but strangely found that she wasn't hungry.

"We need to talk once you feel up to it," Mai told Azula. "Call on me when you're ready."

"Where are you going now?" Azula asked.

"Ty Lee and I are supposed to meet with Iroh shortly." Azula wasn't particularly surprised by the revelation at this point, and suspected exactly what the nature was of what Mai wanted to discuss with her.

"Where is Ty Lee anyway?"

"I last saw her with Aang and Toph. She stopped by to see you earlier, but you were sleeping."

"I see."

"We have to go now. We'll see you both later," Zuko said before leaving.

Azula nodded, as Katara said goodbye.

Turning her attention back to the prodigy, Katara explained, "It's probably not a good idea to eat a full meal just yet, but you need some nourishment."

Just then, Chief Hakoda stopped by Katara and Azula's room and saw his daughter handing a cup of broth to the ex-princess.

"Hi, Katara," he said warmly as he walked into the room, holding his arms out.

"Hi, Dad," she replied, not looking at him and grabbing her own plate of food. Hakoda frowned, and Azula raised an eyebrow at Katara.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

"Fine."

Hakoda came up to the bed then and stood alongside his daughter, but brought his gaze to Azula. "I'm Hakoda, Katara's father."

"She knows who you are. I just called you 'Dad,' didn't I?" she snapped.

"I guess you're right," he said, uncomfortable.

"Now, would you mind giving us a little privacy?" she asked, annoyed.

"Of course," he said with a heavy sigh, leaving the two girls alone.

"Hmm… why are you so mad at your dad?" Azula asked, curious. At first glance, he seemed nothing like her father. If anything, he was like an older version of Katara's brother—not that she knew him particularly well.

"I'm not mad at him," Katara replied.

"Whatever you say," Azula said letting her arm fall to her side. The movement caused her arm to hit against the burns on her sides, and she groaned in pain.

Immediately, Katara's concerned eyes were on her. "You need a healing session and some more painkillers." Azula drank down the pills Katara gave her with the remaining broth, before handing the mug to the waterbender.

Katara then gently pulled back the sheet that covered Azula to reveal the firebender's body, which was covered in a sleeping shift and cropped pants. This made it easier for Katara to tend to the burns and also the remaining wounds from Azula's time while imprisoned by Long Feng.

Moving the sleeping shift up a bit, Katara began to remove the bandages that covered her burns. Azula gritted her teeth in pain as she looked down at her burned body for the first time. It took all her strength not to break down and cry at the sight.

"It was a lot worse before," Katara explained softly. "If I had done nothing, you would have had nerve damage, so the pain isn't a bad thing in this case. But the pain medicine should kick in soon, and my waterbending will help you feel better too."

Azula watched as Katara formed a water glove and brought it to her sides. She found that the girl was right. It did help her feel better, although some places the burns were more raw than others and it hurt.

By the time Katara had finished her healing session, the medicine began to kick in a bit as well. The waterbender then applied a thin layer of ointment to her burns before wrapping them in fresh bandages.

"How did I end up back here?" Azula finally asked.

"I stopped your father from striking you down and managed to get you back here."

"How?" Azula asked, suddenly very curious. What would possess this waterbender to do such a thing? And how did she best her father in combat?

* * *

"Zuko thought we should speak with you, Iroh," Mai began.

"Please have a seat. What is it that you ladies wanted to discuss?" Iroh asked.

"Let me just begin by saying that Ty Lee and I both assisted Azula on her mission for different reasons. I can only speak for myself, but frankly, the only reason I came along was because I was bored out of my mind in the city of New Ozai. I didn't even ask to hear what the mission was before agreeing to it."

"And what about you, Ty Lee?"

"Azula kind of bullied me into joining her, but I was happy to help her once I did. Not because I have anything against you guys, but because she is my friend."

"She bullied you?" Iroh asked.

"She told me that she was sent to capture you and Zuko, and would be honored if I would join her on her mission. She made it sound like a choice, and I would have rather stayed at the circus at the time."

"I guess the thought of invoking her title never crossed her mind," Zuko said sarcastically.

"Ty Lee, you should know better than that," Mai chided her.

"I know, but I hoped maybe being away from Fire Lord Ozai would have made her more like she was when we first played together as kids. When she wasn't so demanding of everyone."

"I guess what we're trying to get at is that we're at a bit of a crossroads. One thing is for certain: Ty Lee and I are no longer helping Azula on this mission to capture you guys or the Avatar. And I suppose after what happened to Azula, the mission is off for her as well. However, we're unsure of where that leaves us," Mai explained.

"Everyone says you give great advice," Ty Lee added.

"Well, I try at least," Iroh said with a smile. "What's on your mind?"

"After what Fire Lord Ozai has done to Zuko and Azula, we don't feel we can fight for the Fire Nation anymore," Mai said.

"They are our friends, and we want to stick with them," Ty Lee chimed in.

"That's very noble of you. So what's the problem exactly?" Iroh kindly asked.

"The idea of being thought of as a traitor is bothersome, especially when it's a result of doing our duty to the Fire Nation. But that's really minor compared to what we're actually worried about. Do you think Fire Lord Ozai would do anything to our families for fighting alongside Zuko, and therefore, the Avatar?" Mai asked. Zuko took a hold of her hand in a comforting gesture.

Iroh looked at them for a moment, stroking his beard, pondering how straightforward he should be. Then he decided there was no need to skirt around it.

"I will be honest with you. My brother's cruelty has no limits, although he is intelligent enough to know when to draw the line if it suits his purposes. Mai, I understand your parents and brother are in New Ozai right now—your father is the governor, correct?"

She nodded.

"I can't say if keeping him in that position benefits the Fire Lord or not. Sorry, I'm not close enough to the situation to properly assess that. As for your family, Ty Lee—where are they now?" Iroh asked.

"My parents are in the Fire Nation capital along with three of my sisters. The other three are married and live in the Fire Nation colonies."

"I see. I really wish I could tell you that everything will be okay, but I simply don't know." Iroh sighed. "Unfortunately, you both are in a lose-lose situation. Even if you were to return back to the Fire Nation, Ozai will not look kindly on you for having been Azula's closest allies."

Mai nodded grimly as Ty Lee looked at Iroh worriedly.

"I recently learned that the real reason my mother disappeared was not because she had played a role in my grandfather Fire Lord Azulon's death. It was just an excuse, as his death was easily explained away. The real reason my father forced her to leave was because she was my closest ally," Zuko added, his fist clenching.

"I'm sorry, Zuko," Ty Lee said softly, as Mai wrapped her arm around him.

"Well, we know going back to the Fire Nation isn't an option. I just wonder what Azula will do," Ty Lee said.

"It will take her some time to figure it out," Iroh replied. "I still am concerned about what kind of effect this experience will have on her mind, but the good thing is she isn't alone. I think it will do her some good to spend some time with someone who is in many ways her equal and her opposite."

* * *

Azula shook her head in equal parts disbelief and begrudging awe of how Katara was able to infiltrate the Fire Nation camp and stop her father from killing her.

"I don't understand you," Azula finally said.

"What don't you understand?" Katara asked, curious.

"What makes you tick. I'm used to people either worshipping me or fighting against me—save Mai and Ty Lee. And before that…" her voice faltered for a moment before continuing. "That is, assuming people knew who I was—the princess of the Fire Nation."

"Over the last several months, I've started to learn that people's titles and nationalities don't define them. I've met some good people from the Fire Nation and some people who aren't so good from the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes. And even people who aren't so good can change. I've seen it with my own eyes," Katara explained, thinking of Zuko and Jet.

"I don't know how to exist in my skin without the title of Fire Nation Princess," Azula quietly admitted.

"Your brother seems to manage okay without the title of Fire Nation Prince," Katara pointed out.

"My brother and I are nothing alike. My father always despised Zuko and favored me. He was the weakling and I was the stronger. We were raised completely different. My father barely acknowledged Zuko after awhile, and groomed me to be his 'true heir' as he called it." Azula sighed. "Since the day I was old enough to bend, my life revolved around the war. Even simple childhood games were a means to train my mind for battle. I was bred to be a weapon. Nothing more. But all weapons eventually get dull or wear out their usefulness. Without the war—the Fire Nation—I am nothing. I am a weapon that now has no purpose."

"You're not just a weapon, Azula. You're a human being."

"I am not a human being. Even my own mother thought I was a monster."

"I'm sure she didn't think that."

"She did. She told me so herself. It's okay. It's the truth," Azula shrugged, trying to brush it off as if it were nothing. But Katara was not about to let it drop.

"You're not a monster either. Would a monster care about her friends? Would a monster have nightmares?"

Azula's eyes narrowed at Katara then. "What, do waterbenders also have the ability to read minds now?"

"No," Katara said softly, shaking her head. "You talk in your sleep… and I've seen you cry."

Azula thought she should have been furious. This Water Tribe peasant had seen her in all her weakest moments. Instead, she felt empty inside. Her mind was fragile and never in her life had she been so afraid. She was truly lost now that her identity had been forcibly ripped from her by her own father.

"You're not alone, Azula," Katara said, pulling the firebender from her thoughts. She could only imagine what was going on inside her head, but she knew it wasn't a happy place to be at the moment. "You have your brother and uncle, Mai and Ty Lee…" she trailed off, not sure if Azula would want to hear Katara's name included on that list.

Azula shook her head slightly. "You'll all be leaving soon, won't you?"

"Not for another couple of weeks. You don't need to worry yourself with that. Just focus on getting better, okay?" Katara encouraged her, placing her hand over Azula's.

"Do you still consider me an enemy?" Azula asked.

"No, I don't."

"So what am I to you?"

"Honestly… I don't know. I don't really know you that well, do I?" she replied with a smile. "What about you?" she continued, her expression turning a little more serious. "Do you still consider me an enemy?"

Azula remembered when she had fought the Kyoshi Warriors, when she had told them that any friend of the Avatar was an enemy of hers. Was that still true? The Avatar was an enemy to the Fire Nation. But she was no longer part of the Fire Nation, so he wasn't her enemy anymore, she reasoned. Aang and his friends would never attack Azula unless she attacked them, so she had nothing to fear from them.

"I guess not," she finally said. There were a lot of things about herself and her life she had to reexamine. Hating people took a lot of energy, she realized.

Azula yawned then, the medicine taking full effect.

"You should get some more rest," Katara said as she pulled the sheet back up to cover the firebender's body. She then walked over to her own bed and climbed in, quickly falling into much deserved sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Katara followed Sokka into the kitchen area for breakfast to find her father already seated at one of the small tables. Unconsciously, Katara tensed. Sokka hadn't told her they would be dining with Hakoda. She thought it would just be the two of them. Sokka had suspected something was wrong after Hakoda came back from meeting with Katara the previous evening and was determined to get to the bottom of it.

"Good morning, Katara and Sokka," Hakoda greeted his children with a warm smile.

"Hi, Dad," Sokka replied with a smile of his own. Katara said nothing as the two took a seat across from him. Hakoda's face took on a slight frown before continuing.

"I asked the chef to prepare a special meal for us," he explained just as the chef came out with three steaming bowls. "Sea prune stew."

Sokka's mouth watered at the smell as his bowl was placed in front of him. Katara couldn't help but do the same. Not since they were last at the North Pole had either of them eaten traditional Water Tribe food.

"Enjoy," Hakoda said.

"Oh, I will," Sokka replied before digging in.

* * *

"Come on, Twinkle Toes, focus!" Toph exclaimed as he barely blocked a simple levitating rock she had sent his way.

"I'm sorry, Toph," Aang replied, shaking his head. "I don't know why I'm having a hard time focusing."

"You're having a hard time focusing because you're distracted. What's the problem?" she asked, taking a break from their earthbending practice.

Aang sighed. "I don't know if I have what it takes to defeat the Fire Lord."

"You'll be facing him on the day of the eclipse and he's not a hundred percent because of what Katara did. You'll have every advantage over him," she reasoned.

"It doesn't really seem fair to me."

"Fair? Since when is war fair? Do you really think the Fire Lord would fight fair against you?"

"Probably not, but…" he trailed off.

"What are you really afraid of, Aang?" Toph asked, dropping his nickname for a moment. This was serious if he was having doubts about the invasion plan.

"I'm afraid to fail, Toph," he quietly admitted. Usually these admissions were saved for Katara's ears, but Toph had asked the question.

"This is about the Avatar State, isn't it?" Toph said knowingly.

"Yes," he replied, a little surprised at how easily she had figured it out. "I left Guru Pathik before we finished training because I had a vision that Katara was in trouble. I had the vision while I was in the process of opening my seventh chakra. He told me if I left that I wouldn't be able to get into the Avatar State at all, but I left anyway. Now my seventh chakra is blocked. I can't even call on Roku for guidance anymore. I'm pretty sure that if one of you guys were in immediate danger I could get into the Avatar State, but I still have no idea how to control it once I'm there, which is dangerous for everyone."

"I wouldn't worry so much, Twinkle Toes. You don't need the Avatar State to defeat the Fire Lord. You'll soon be a master of all four elements," she said with a grin. "And you have us."

* * *

"Look, Katara. I don't know what your problem is, but it's not fair that you're treating Dad like this."

"What are you talking about?"

"You were so rude to him during breakfast. I don't understand. Why are so mad at him?"

"I'm not mad at him."

"Then why did you act like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like he's the Fire Lord or something. You'd think he had been the one to burn Azula and Zuko the way you talked to him."

Katara realized somewhat shamefully that what Sokka said was true. But she still wasn't ready to attempt to reconcile with him. If anything, she felt that her father owed it to her to make amends.

* * *

It was early afternoon when Azula called on Mai and Ty Lee. She wanted to get whatever it was they felt they needed to say over with.

"Hi, Azula," Ty Lee said as she entered the room, taking a seat on Katara's bed. Mai followed suit.

"So, what is it you wished to speak to me about?" Azula asked.

"Ty Lee and I have made a decision. After what's happened over the last week, we can no longer in good conscience continue to fight for the Fire Nation. Well, at least not for the Fire Lord," Mai began.

"And why's that?" Azula asked, wanting to know where their loyalties now rested and why.

"Because of what we were ordered by the Fire Lord to do to you through Long Feng," Mai answered, shuddering slightly at the memory.

"And because of what he actually did to you," Ty Lee tearfully finished, looking at the bandages covering her friend's legs.

Azula closed her eyes, trying to shut out the memories. She realized the new reality to the dynamic of their relationship—she didn't have the authority to make them follow her orders anymore. "There's more to this decision, isn't there?" Azula asked after finally opening her eyes to look at her friends once more.

"Yes," Mai said with a nod. "We've decided that it's in the Fire Nation's best interest for this war to end. We're going to fight alongside Zuko and his friends."

Azula's eyes narrowed at them, but Ty Lee saw something akin to hurt in them. "So you're leaving me then?" She tried to keep her tone neutral, but her voice betrayed her.

"No, we're not," Ty Lee explained. "We're not abandoning you, Azula. You are still our friend, and we are here for you. But we have to do what we feel is the right thing."

* * *

"Thank you both for meeting with me," Iroh said as Zuko and Aang took a seat in his room.

"Not a problem," Aang replied.

"You said you have some news, Uncle," Zuko said.

"Yes. I have to leave for a while to take care of some unfinished business. There are some old friends I need to visit. Trust me when I tell you it is of the utmost importance." Iroh knew it was time now that Zuko was a part of the Avatar's family.

"But what about Aang's firebending training?" Zuko asked.

"You can continue to teach him," Iroh replied.

"Me?"

"Yes, you," Iroh said with a smile.

Zuko glanced over at Aang to see what his reaction to this was. Aang appeared to be more than okay with the idea.

"But, Uncle, I'm not a master firebender like you are."

"You are very close though, Prince Zuko. Aang, you have mastered air and water. The next element in the cycle is earth. From what Toph has told me, you have a ways to go with that. In the meantime, you should continue to learn the basics of firebending."

"How long will you be gone for?" Aang asked.

"I should be able to rejoin you a week before the eclipse. Of course, if that changes, I will send word. When I return, you will both be ready to learn the true art of firebending."

* * *

Azula now sat on her bed, alone in her room. It felt like her entire world had been flipped upside down in a matter of days.

For years, she had kept her emotions tightly secured and tucked away, but she found herself reaching a breaking point. All she wanted to do now was run from the feelings that were threatening to overtake her spirit, but she couldn't. She wasn't strong enough anymore, and she began to wonder if she ever really had been strong enough to begin with.

She had given her all to her father, and it still wasn't good enough. Granted, she knew she had made a mistake—maybe got too ambitious—but she was so sure that her plan to conquer Ba Sing Se would go off without a hitch. It hadn't, but she had convinced herself that she could do no wrong in the eyes of her father. That was probably her biggest mistake of all, she realized.

And now her title and honor were gone. She didn't know who she was anymore.

An overwhelming feeling of regret grabbed a hold of her, followed by fear and sadness, before finally contorting into full on rage. Azula screamed and blasted two fireballs from her fists. She watched as they crashed into the dresser across the room, setting it on fire.

Katara, who had been walking down the hallway toward their room, heard Azula yell and rushed into the room to find the firebender staring angrily at the burning piece of furniture. Reacting quickly, she bent the water in the room's basin onto the flames, extinguishing them before turning to face Azula.

The firebender tensed, balling her hands into fists as she tried to get herself under control. But it was too late. The floodgates had finally been opened, and the force of nine years of bottled up emotions made closing them impossible. Angry tears ran down her face, and she buried her head in her hands, ignoring the pain the movement caused in her sides.

The waterbender sat by Azula's side and placed a warm hand on her back in an effort to comfort her. She knew there was nothing she could say to make the fallen princess feel better. Even though she couldn't really relate to what Azula was going through, she did understand what it felt like to experience a profound loss. When her mother died, there was nothing anyone could say that would soothe the ache she felt, but knowing that people around her cared had helped.

For once, Azula stopped wondering what possessed Katara to do the things she did and was simply grateful for the girl's presence. She may have been lost, but at least she wasn't alone.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Azula had seen enough people burned and scarred at the hands of firebenders throughout to her life to know what was in store for her physically. She knew that she had at least two more weeks before her burns would be close to being healed. The initial waterbending that Katara had done minimized the damage to second degree burns, and now would come the toughest part to deal with—the blistering of the burns followed by painful itching.

Katara knew this as well from her time spent in the Northern Water Tribe. She had aided many a wounded Water Tribesman after Zhou's attack several months prior. However, she was uncertain about the healing process Azula undoubtedly needed to go through mentally.

For her part, Azula still felt a gnawing anger in her gut over her father's rejection, but most of the sadness and fear she had felt had been released the night before as she cried. If Zuko could make it in this world without their father's love than she certainly could, she told herself once she had finally calmed down. There was still some lingering doubt, as she realized the hardest part would be finding a new path for herself.

But like Katara had said, she wasn't alone. For as annoying as Zuko could be, he had stuck around. So did Mai and Ty Lee. And now there was someone else who was determined to help her, although the spirits only knew why, Azula thought. Not that she was complaining.

"Glad to see you're in a better mood today," Katara said with a smile as she finished cleaning the burns on Azula's sides, her hands unconsciously lingering a little longer than necessary, the firebender noted.

Azula shrugged, not really sure what to say in response. Her head was still swimming with unresolved issues, but she _was_ in a better mood, relatively speaking.

"You should still take antibiotics for the next few days, but the painkillers are up to you. These blisters could be bothersome," Katara said.

"I know, but I'd rather keep a clear head if possible. Pain isn't exactly foreign to me, you know," Azula replied.

Katara knew she shouldn't have been surprised by the revelation, but she was. Not wanting to possibly upset Azula by rehashing old memories, she held back her curiosity to ask for details. Instead she brought her attention to the firebender's legs.

"The burns on your legs aren't as bad."

"I know. They've already gotten to the itching phase. Do you have any ointment for that?"

"I do," Katara said, reaching for a bowl on the nightstand before applying said ointment. "I think you should be able to walk today with minimal pain."

"Good, I'm getting tired of staring at that wall," Azula commented with a wry smile and Katara couldn't help but chuckle at Azula's odd sense of humor.

* * *

Over the next several days, Azula and Katara fell into a comfortable rhythm. Every morning, Katara would tend to Azula's burns before the pair would head out to get breakfast. Azula enjoyed being able to walk around, even if it was done at a slower pace than she was accustomed to. They were almost constantly together, and Azula found it helped keep her mind off of the trauma of recent events.

To both of their surprises, they actually got along quite well and enjoyed each other's company. Katara loved Azula's sharp mind and intellect, and they would often get into long discussions ranging from the philosophy behind the bending arts to the proper way to settle a disagreement. These conversations led Azula to become curious about Katara's worldview. It was in such sharp contrast to how she had been brought up to think, but the girl did seem a lot happier for it than she ever was. Maybe there was something to it.

Katara found herself drawn to Azula and wanted to spend all her time with her. She was so different from anyone else she had come across in her travels. For her part, Azula had to admit to herself that she had never enjoyed simply just being in someone's presence as much as she did Katara—the waterbender had a calming effect on her spirit. Considering how things started out between them in Omashu, it was certainly unexpected, but not unwelcome.

One morning, as Katara was changing the bandages on Azula's sides, she let her gaze fall on the firebender's taut abdomen. The creamy white skin was in such contrast to her own chocolate brown. Realizing she was staring, she blushed and quickly finished what she was doing.

Azula noticed Katara had been staring and wondered what the blush was about, but decided not to say anything. Regular, everyday interaction with people was still rather new to her now that she no longer could hide behind the authority her former title had provided.

Throughout the rest of the day, Katara found herself stealing glances at the firebender when she thought Azula wasn't looking. The prodigy pretended not to notice, since she found the waterbender's gaze didn't make her uncomfortable. If anything, she liked the way it made her feel. She always did enjoy attention, although this was a decidedly different kind of attention than she was used to receiving.

As Katara lay in bed that night trying to fall asleep, she realized with some confusion that there was something familiar about what was causing her to stare at Azula in the first place. It was what she felt when she first met Jet and Haru. The difference then was that those feelings quickly passed, but she found that these feelings had only grown stronger over the last several days. _"It's just curiosity. It's natural to be curious about my opposite,"_ she told herself before finally falling asleep.

_Katara had been busy doing her chores—specifically, washing Sokka's pants—when she heard laughter coming from behind a nearby snow bank. Curious, she put the pants down and moved toward the sound._

_Peeking over the bank, she saw two older girls from her village sitting very close to each other. She was about to say hello when something unexpected occurred. _

_She watched wide-eyed as they brought their lips together in a kiss. She felt flushed and a warmth spread through her as she watched the passion between two girls grow as they continued to hold each other._

Katara woke from her dream, still feeling the flush from the memory. She had never spoken to anyone about what she saw that day or the feeling it had invoked in her. The waterbender rolled over onto her side and, once again, let her eyes rest on the firebender sleeping on the bed opposite hers. She briefly wondered what it would be like to kiss Azula before shaking her head in an attempt to push away those thoughts. _"What am I thinking?"_

* * *

Aang thought it was a little odd how Katara had taken responsibility for Azula. On one level, it made sense because Katara was a healer, but she had clearly done all the healing that was required of her. Aang figured it would have been Mai, Ty Lee, or maybe even Zuko who would look after the prodigy now.

She was spending almost all her time with the firebender, and there was something in Katara's eyes when she looked at Azula that unsettled Aang. It reminded him of the way she used to look at Jet and Haru. He tried to convince himself that he was imagining things.

Either way, it had been some time since they had spent any quality time together, and he decided to remedy that.

"Hey, Katara. It's been awhile since we've done any waterbending. Can we get together sometime soon?" he asked her at breakfast.

Katara, realizing she had been neglecting her friend and her pupil, readily agreed. "Of course. Let's meet in the palace gardens in an hour. The Earth King has a large pond that's perfect for waterbending."

"Sounds great," Aang said with a grin. "See you in an hour."

* * *

"Remember how we defeated and captured the Kyoshi Warriors?" Ty Lee had stopped by to visit with Azula.

"Of course. How could I forget a thing like that?" Azula rolled her eyes.

"What happened to their leader?"

"Why do you ask?" the firebender asked suspiciously. Ty Lee had never cared to know details like this in the past.

"She's Sokka's girlfriend. I think he deserves to know where she is."

Azula, realizing there was no reason to keep this information to herself, decided to tell Ty Lee the truth. "She's being held at Jian prison in the Fire Nation colonies." She paused for a moment before continuing. "I am curious about one thing though."

"What's that?"

"Don't you like that Water Tribe boy?"

"Well, I think he's cute, but he loves Suki and I'm not about to stand in the way of true love," Ty Lee said, letting the romantic in her come out.

"True love?" Azula asked, raising an eyebrow at her naïve friend.

"Yes. So few people in this world find it," she explained wistfully. "I think Zuko and Mai are well on their way to finding it."

"Zuko and Mai?" Azula had suspected something was going on between her brother and friend, but Ty Lee just confirmed it.

"Yeah! You know, Mai's aura always used to be so gray and dingy, but it's looked so much better these days. And Zuko's used to be an angry red, but it's mellowed a bit. It must be love!"

"Whatever you say, Ty Lee."

The acrobat grinned at her friend. "You should try it sometime."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, okay, maybe love is a big step, but it couldn't hurt to flirt a little. A cute boy's attention is pretty satisfying."

"Ugh, you have got to be kidding me."

Ty Lee was reveling the opportunity to actually just _talk_ to Azula, something they hadn't done since before she ran off to join the circus, and she was not about to let it pass by.

"I'm not. You should try it. It's fun," she encouraged with a smile.

Azula shook her head. "For some reason when I meet boys they act as if I'm going to do something horrible to them."

Ty Lee giggled. "You probably would do something horrible to them."

Azula frowned then, but not for the reason Ty Lee assumed.

"I'm sure they're just intimidated by you. Okay, look, if you want a boy to like you just look at him and smile a lot and laugh at everything he says, even if it's not funny."

"Well, that sounds really shallow and stupid. Not to mention a complete waste of time."

Ty Lee looked thoughtfully at her friend for a moment, realizing that Azula's look of sadness had nothing to do with boys being intimidated by her.

"Haven't you ever wanted a boy's affection, Azula?" Ty Lee asked, her voice growing a little softer.

Azula scoffed. "Truthfully… no. Emotional and physical relationships with boys have always been the furthest thing from my mind. They only would have gotten in the way of my firebending training and my military assignments."

"What about a girl's affection?" Ty Lee tried again, hoping she wasn't pushing too far.

Azula's eyes widened for a second in surprise before narrowing at the acrobat. "What are you saying, Ty Lee?"

"Nothing. It was just a question," she smiled, trying to put the firebender at ease. "Forget I said anything."

Ty Lee had noticed the way Katara looked at Azula, but didn't want to say anything directly in case Azula was oblivious to it. The last thing she wanted to do was put a strain on their newly forming friendship. Spirits knew Azula needed friends more than ever.

Azula knew exactly where Ty Lee had been headed with her question, but she had only recently—as in the last two months—started to entertain the idea that she might have a preference for girls. One thing was for certain, she always did prefer their company over that of males.

And the way Katara looked at her was not lost on Azula either, but she wasn't sure the waterbender even realized what she was doing.

* * *

They both sat at the water's edge, enjoying the sunset. Katara soon felt Aang's eyes on her though and turned to face him.

"Thanks for spending the day with me, Katara. I've missed being with you."

"I've missed it too," she replied with a smile. She noticed a faint blush creep up Aang's neck.

Feeling emboldened by Katara's words and the magic of the sunset, Aang leaned in and kissed her. She had almost expected him to do it and found herself returning the kiss.

But just like when they had kissed in the cave of the two lovers, there was no spark. She loved Aang dearly, but just as a friend, she finally realized. Pulling away, Katara quickly got up to stand.

"I'm sorry, Aang," was all she said, before leaving the stunned airbender alone in the garden.

* * *

Katara found Azula in their room standing next to the water basin in nothing but her underwrappings, and her breath hitched slightly at the sight before the angry burns stopped her wandering thoughts. Azula had taken off the bandages on her sides, and was looking through the assortment of ointments Katara used.

"Hey, which one of these helps with itching?" Azula asked, having noticed Katara's return. The waterbender wandered over to her side and looked at the medicines on the shelf above the basin. As Katara did so, Azula unconsciously brought her hands to scratch at the burns.

"Azula, stop scratching," Katara scolded her and grabbed her wrists, gently moving her hands away from the burns on her sides. The maneuver had placed her face to face with the firebender, and Katara found herself unable to tear her eyes away from Azula's golden orbs.

They gazed into each other's eyes for long moments, anticipation filling them both. And then as if commanded by those hypnotic irises, Katara slowly leaned closer, lightly brushing her lips against Azula's. The firebender had almost expected Katara to do this—in fact, part of her wanted Katara to do this—and she found herself deepening the kiss. Katara quickly discovered that she liked kissing Azula. A lot. This was nothing like any other kiss she had experienced before.

Aang rounded the corner and approached the doorway of Katara and Azula's room. The door was slightly ajar, so he didn't bother to knock. Instead, he pushed it open only to see the girl he loved passionately kissing his former enemy.

The two girls were so wrapped up in the heat of the moment that they didn't notice Aang standing at the door with his mouth hung open, as his heart sunk into the pit of his stomach. Holding back tears, he ran down the hallway, wanting to get as far away from them as possible.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"My lord, Daha has arrived, per your request," a guard informed the Fire Lord.

Ozai, still bedridden but conscious and seated upright, nodded his approval. "Send him in."

A large man, towering over seven feet tall and possessing metal prosthetics, silently entered the Fire Lord's chambers and came to his knees at the foot of Ozai's bed.

"I have another job for you, Daha. I need you to take care of a group of traitors as well as the waterbender who put me in this state. They are currently in the Earth Kingdom city of Ba Sing Se, but they won't be there too much longer," he explained before turning to face one of his guards, who then handed a scroll to the assassin. "The details you need are contained in that scroll. Now go," he ordered.

Daha bowed before leaving just as silently as he had arrived.

For the first time in weeks, the Fire Lord allowed a genuine smile to grace his lips.

* * *

"Has anyone seen Aang?" Zuko asked the gang over breakfast. "I can't find him anywhere. We were supposed to work on firebending this morning."

"Nope, can't say that I have. First place I came was here. I need food," Sokka said with a yawn before reaching for a slice of smoked salmon. He had returned with Hakoda and a few other men from their tribe earlier that morning. They had been away for a couple of days working on making some improvements to their ships before the invasion. These vessels would play a crucial role on the day of the eclipse.

"He's probably just sleeping in for once," Toph said.

"No, I checked his room, but he wasn't there. It almost looked like he didn't sleep in his bed last night," Zuko replied.

Azula and Katara entered the kitchen area at that moment. "Good morning, everyone," Katara greeted the group cheerfully. Azula had a satisfied smile on her face.

"Good morning," Ty Lee practically beamed at them. She saw the shift in their auras and knew _something_ had happened between the two of them. "Azula, come sit with me," she said, motioning to the empty chair next to her.

Azula mentally rolled her eyes, having a good idea of what Ty Lee was after, as she sat down next to the acrobat. She shot her friend a warning glance not to say anything here and hoped Ty Lee got the hint. Katara took a seat on the other side of Azula.

"Where's Aang?" Katara asked, noticing that he was the only one from their group not present.

"That's what we were trying to figure out before you two got here," Toph replied.

The kiss Katara shared with Aang the evening before flashed through her mind, and she couldn't help but think his no-show at breakfast may have had something to do with her reaction to it.

"I'll be right back," Katara said, excusing herself to go in search of Aang.

* * *

Hakoda and Bato walked down the hallways of the palace wing containing guest rooms, looking forward to a warm meal. As they turned a corner, they saw a very upset looking Katara clutching a piece of paper.

"I'll leave you two alone," Bato said quietly before continuing along.

"What's wrong, Katara?" Hakoda asked as he approached his daughter.

"He left."

"What?"

"Aang," she clarified, clearly frustrated. "He just took off on Appa and disappeared. All he left was a note saying he had to find a way to defeat the Fire Lord on his own," she explained, only telling him part of what Aang's note said.

"Maybe that's his way of being brave."

Katara found herself getting angry with her father. "It's not brave. It's selfish and stupid. We're supposed to be a family and stick together."

There was a brief moment of silence as Hakoda let Katara's words sink in.

"You're talking about me too, aren't you?"

Katara was crying now. "How could you leave us, Dad? I mean, I know we had Gran Gran, and she loved us, but… but we were just so lost without you."

She turned away from him sobbing then. Hakoda put a hand on her shoulder as a feeling of guilt came over him. "I am so sorry, Katara."

Katara hugged her father, continuing to cry into his chest. Hakoda returned the embrace wanting to protect his daughter from the pain he had unintentionally inflicted on her.

"I understand why you left. I really do. And I know that you had to go, so why do I still feel this way? I was so sad and angry and hurt."

"I love you more than anything. You and your brother are my entire world. I thought about you every day I was gone, and every night when I went to sleep. I would lay awake missing you so much, it would ache."

* * *

Aang stared up at the stone ceiling trying to clear his head, but all he could think about was the kiss he had shared with Katara and then the sight of her kissing Azula with a passion he could only dream about.

Momo hopped onto Aang's belly then, trying to pull him out of his funk.

"Not now, Momo. Go play with Appa," he grumbled and Momo dejectedly wandered off. "What am I going to do?" he sighed to himself.

* * *

"Aang's gone," Katara informed the group sadly.

"What?!" Zuko, Sokka, and Toph exclaimed at once.

"Are you sure?" Azula asked, taking a seat alongside the waterbender. She wanted to comfort her, but wasn't sure how.

"Yes. He left me a note."

"Where did he go?" Mai asked.

"I don't know. He didn't say."

"Well, did he at least say why he left?" Sokka asked.

"He said he had to prepare to face the Fire Lord on his own."

"There has to be more to it than that," Toph said. "I know he was concerned about failing when he faced the Fire Lord, but I know what I said had assured him that he would win."

"Well… he did mention that he was upset," Katara reluctantly revealed.

"Upset about what?" Zuko asked.

"He, um, didn't say."

Since Katara's feet weren't touching the floor, Toph was unable to detect the telltale physical signs the waterbender exerted that showed she was lying. However, Azula noticed, but chose not to say anything.

"I'm sure he'll be back soon. He probably just needs time to cool off about whatever it is that's bugging him," Sokka figured. "Maybe he just needed a break, you know?"

* * *

"You're a terrible liar, you know that?" Azula commented with a teasing smile now that they were alone in their room.

"I know," Katara sighed, still obviously upset about Aang's running away.

"Why are you so worried? He'll be back."

"I don't think so, Azula," Katara said shaking her head before procuring the note Aang had left her. Silently, she handed it to the firebender.

Azula read the note, trying not to show any of the emotion she was feeling—confusion, hurt, and embarrassment. But Katara noticed her tense, and realized letting Azula read the note without any context probably hadn't been the smartest idea.

"You kissed him?" she asked, the hurt she felt evident in her amber eyes.

Katara shook her head and placed a hand on Azula's thigh, being careful to avoid the burn. "No, he kissed me. I only care for Aang as a friend."

"And how do you care for me?" Azula was in unknown territory for sure, but so was Katara. These kinds of feelings were very new to both of them.

"I'm not sure exactly," Katara said with a smile. "But I know I care for you as more than just a friend."

Unable to explain what she was feeling, Katara decided to show Azula instead, and brought the prodigy's head down for a kiss that left Azula feeling dizzy, and promptly quelled the confusion she had been feeling moments before.

* * *

"Hello, Aang," a cheerful voice interrupted the airbender's brooding.

He recognized that voice anywhere and momentarily forgot his worries as he brought his attention to a smiling face. "Guru Pathik."

"I know you've been looking for me, Aang. I hope you've learned what you needed to in our time apart."

Aang sighed. "I'm not sure anymore, Guru. In a way, I feel like it's not just my seventh chakra that's blocked, but all six before it."

"I know. I felt a strong sensation in my meditations that you were distressed and sought refuge here. Are you ready to finally master the Avatar State, my pupil?"

Trying to shake the negative thoughts from his head, he sat beside his guru, not wanting to disappoint him a second time. "I'll do whatever it takes."

* * *

It had now been three days since Aang had disappeared and the gang still had not heard anything from him.

"I don't think Aang is coming back," Katara told everyone tearfully.

"What makes you say that?" Sokka asked.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't completely honest with you guys. There was more to his note," she admitted, handing the piece of paper to her brother. Everyone except Azula and Katara gathered around him to read what it had to say.

_Katara,_

_I hope you are the one who found this note. That's why I left it someplace where only you would think to look._

_As you've probably figured out by now, I'm gone. I'm not sure where I'm going, but I had to leave. It's better if I prepare to face the Fire Lord alone. But I think it's only fair if I explain to you why._

_Tonight, I went to seek you out to make sure you were okay after what happened in the garden. After our kiss, you left so suddenly, and I was worried I had moved too fast. But when I saw you kissing someone else, I couldn't take it._

_I'm sorry, Katara, but what I saw broke my heart, and I don't know if I can continue to travel with you knowing your affections are for Azula when I wish they were for me._

_Maybe this makes me selfish, but it's the truth. And I can't let myself be distracted when the fate of the world is hanging in the balance. I have to do whatever it takes, even if it means leaving._

_Aang_

Sokka and Zuko stood there slack jawed at the revelation of what was going on between their sisters. Ty Lee and Mai weren't at all surprised by the news of Azula and Katara being more than friends, but were a little taken aback by Aang's reaction.

"Guys, you gonna tell me what it says?" Toph asked. "Because in case you haven't noticed, seeing is not one of my skills."

Seeing as Sokka and Zuko were still somewhat stunned, Mai plucked the note from Sokka's hands, and took it upon herself to read it to Toph in her signature deadpan voice.

"Well, congrats to you two," Toph said, gesturing to Azula and Katara, "but what are we going to do about Aang?"

"We have to find him," Katara replied.

"I can't believe he would just leave like that!" Sokka exclaimed. "What about the invasion plan? We need him to take down the Fire Lord."

"The Fire Lord knows about your invasion plan," Azula informed him.

"What? How?" Sokka asked.

"The Earth King told me all about it when I first arrived in Ba Sing Se. And when I captured Katara, she had the generals' documents with her. I sent everything to him."

"It doesn't matter," Zuko interrupted. "Firebenders will still be powerless during the eclipse."

"I know that," Azula shot back. "Will you let me finish?"

Zuko nodded, annoyed.

"You'll just have to modify the logistics of the plan somewhat since the Fire Nation knows of your strategy, but you can still successfully invade the capital. The problems will arise when it comes time to face the Fire Lord. He'll undoubtedly be in hiding in the underground bunker Fire Lord Sozin built. I'm very familiar with the layout of the bunker, but there are hundreds of rooms he could hide in.

"You don't need the Avat—Aang," she corrected herself, "to lead the attack. That's what generals are for. You don't even need him to defeat the Fire Lord."

"But its his destiny as the Avatar to be the one to defeat him," Zuko said.

"Says who? Katara almost did it without even trying to defeat him. My point is, it will come down to pinning down the Fire Lord's location. From there, any one of you could take him down if it's during the eclipse. You don't even have to be a bender, so long as you are proficient in weapons combat."

"The eclipse will only last eight minutes. I don't think that will give us enough time if we don't know his exact location beforehand," Sokka said, now worried his plan was all for naught.

"You're probably right," Azula agreed. "I'm just telling you what I think you need to know and what could be useful. The adjustments to the details can be made as you get closer to departing from General Fong's base."

"You keep saying 'you.' Don't you mean 'we,' Azula?" Katara asked her uncertainly.

"Yeah, you're part of the group now," Ty Lee said happily.

Azula, who had purposefully avoided using the word 'we,' saw that the gang was more than okay with her being a part of their family. Of course it helped that one of them literally was family, two were childhood friends, and one was her—what was she supposed to call Katara?

"Okay, fine. 'We,'" she agreed with a crooked smile, and Katara gently squeezed her hand.

"Not to belabor this fact, but I still think we need to find Aang," Zuko said.

"Zuko's right. He's our friend, and he's obviously hurting right now. He needs us," Katara said.

"Yeah, but the reason he left was because he couldn't handle being around you two," Toph replied. "How are we going to find him? And then how are we going to convince him to come back?"

"Finding him will be easy," Azula said with a smirk, recalling how easily she had done so in the past. "Convincing him to come back? Well, I'll leave that to you."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

"You really shouldn't travel for another couple of days," Katara said as she helped Azula pack up their belongings.

"I'll be fine. I told you, I can deal with the pain. The blisters are almost all gone. The itching is the most annoying part," Azula explained. _"Then there's the scarring,"_ she thought to herself, closing her eyes for a moment.

"You okay?" Katara asked, putting her hand on the firebender's shoulder.

"I'm fine," she lied, forcing a smile onto her face before looking at Katara.

Katara brought her other hand up to Azula's face and lightly brushed her thumb across the girl's lips.

"I still don't understand you," Azula admitted.

"Then stop trying," Katara said with a soft smile before leaning in for a kiss.

"Ahem." The sound of Toph clearing her throat brought their attention to the door, causing Katara to blush. "You kids ready to go?"

"Give us a couple more minutes. We'll meet you outside," Azula replied.

"Alright. Try not to keep us waiting," Toph said smugly before heading off.

"Now, where were we?" Azula asked with an impish smile before capturing Katara's lips in another kiss.

* * *

"I'm sorry, Guru. It's been even harder to open the chakras this time around."

"I noticed, but let's try it again, Aang. As long as you work at it steadily, it will come."

"I believe you. But it's been hard to concentrate. I feel… jealous and heartbroken."

"You must face head on what it is that is disturbing your mind. Work on your heartache and jealousy specifically. It's the only way your energy can flow freely."

Aang straightened in his seat, determined. "Okay, I'll try it again."

He closed his eyes and brought his mind to the base of his spine, focusing at the earth chakra. It was blocked by fear. _"What is it that I fear? I'm afraid that I won't have what it takes to defeat the Fire Lord before it's too late."_ Aang visualized those fears being released and felt the chakra begin to open.

Next, Aang brought his awareness to the water chakra. It was blocked by guilt. _"What do I feel guilty about? I ran away. Again."_ He attempted to release his guilt, but found this was harder to do. However, the chakra opened slightly. It was a start.

Moving up to his stomach, Aang focused on the fire chakra. It was blocked by shame. _"What am I ashamed of? That I feel jealous over two people's happiness."_ But jealousy had a tight grip on his spirit, and he was barely able to open this chakra.

Coming to the fourth chakra at his heart center, he felt that it was blocked by grief. _"I'm heartbroken that I can't be with Katara. How can I be so selfish? I know that she cares about me."_ He saw the faces of everyone else in his new family, he saw that they were all looking for him and worried about him. A feeling of love filled him, and his grief flowed out, opening his heart chakra. The love he felt pooled down into the fire chakra and released jealousy's hold on him.

Brining his mind to focus at his throat, Aang came to the sound chakra. He found that this one wasn't all that hard to open completely. _"There are no more lies. I've accepted my destiny as the Avatar."_

Next, Aang moved up to the light chakra at the center of his forehead. It was blocked by illusion. _"What are my illusions? That my happiness is somehow different from other people's happiness, that's it's more important. All people what the same thing—freedom from pain and a chance at happiness."_ As this chakra opened, he felt a profound connection to the beings on this planet.

Guru Pathik smiled to himself. He could feel the positive energetic shift taking place in Aang. Only one more chakra to go, and he could properly guide his student into the Avatar State. And this time, he would make sure he explained what it really meant to let go of earthly attachment.

* * *

"Wow, these eel hounds are pretty impressive. They move almost as quickly as Appa," Sokka noted.

"And they're as sweet as polar bear dogs," Ty Lee added appreciatively.

"How do you know what polar bear dogs are like?" Katara asked. "They're native to the Southern Water Tribe."

"I used to be in the circus, remember? They have every kind of animal there. The polar bear dogs were my favorite!" she replied before adding, "It sure was nice of the general to let us borrow them."

"Well, he knows how important Aang is to ending the war. It's the least he could do," Sokka reasoned.

General How had provided the gang with his three best-trained eel hounds. The mammoth amphibious beasts had the ability to both run and swim at incredible speeds, and due to their size allowed for multiple riders. Zuko and Mai rode together on one, while Katara and Azula paired up on another—leaving Sokka, Ty Lee, and Toph with the largest of the eel hounds.

They traveled east for several hours, covering a lot of ground. The eel hounds had picked up Appa's scent, and Sokka figured Aang had gone back to the Eastern Air Temple, which was the closest thing to home for the airbender.

"This looks like a good place to make camp," Azula commented upon reaching a decent sized clearing. "It'll be dark soon, so we should stop now anyway."

"Good idea," Katara agreed, pulling their eel hound to a halt, as the rest of the gang followed suit. The beast got down on its belly to allow its riders to dismount, which Katara did with relative ease. Azula jumped down, the impact of the landing sending a slight ripple of pain through her legs, causing her to wince.

Katara looked at her with concerned eyes, but didn't say anything. She knew that if it was anything serious, Azula would tell her.

"Zuko and Sokka, unload the supplies. Mai and Ty Lee, go gather some firewood. Toph, you can help Katara prepare dinner," Azula ordered, falling into her old habits.

"Azula, stop. There's no need to be barking orders at everyone. You're not a princess anymore." It was a matter-of-fact statement by the earthbender, but it came across as harsh.

Everyone paused, and Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee held their breath at what Azula's reaction might be. There was a palpable tension in the air as Azula glared at Toph, before finally stalking off into the woods. Katara shot an annoyed look at Toph's tactlessness before going after the firebender.

"Azula, wait up."

Azula stopped walking, but kept her back to Katara.

"Don't let Toph get to you. She can be a little brash sometimes, but she means well."

The prodigy didn't say anything. Instead she shot a fireball at a nearby rock, the flames harmlessly dissipating into the warm evening air. Katara carefully walked around to face Azula, and saw the barely restrained anger in the girl's eyes. She still wasn't used to the fact that she could no longer call herself Princess of the Fire Nation.

"I was born to rule, to lead. It's my divine right."

"Who told you that?" Katara asked softly, having a pretty good idea of what the answer was.

Azula clenched her jaw and looked down. "My father did."

_"My daughter, our right to rule has come from the will of the Spirit of Agni, and nothing else. This divine right does not derive from any temporal authority, like the will of our subjects, the nobility, or the fire sages. It's something you were born with. You wear the mark of Agni and are accountable to no one except me."_

Azula laughed at the memory, but those laughs quickly gave way to angry tears. Katara wrapped her arms around Azula in an effort to comfort, and the prodigy let her. Her father's rejection still stung. It felt like a hole had been torn through her spirit, but somehow, when the waterbender was near, it helped to soothe the ache.

"You'd think for as well as I could manipulate people I would have noticed when someone was doing the same to me. I was so foolish as a child. I drank up every word he said."

"It's not your fault. A father shouldn't manipulate his own child. I'm sorry you've had to go through all this," Katara finished by placing a tender kiss on Azula's lips. The firebender closed her eyes, and for a moment, forgot all about her father and the pain he had caused her.

"I suppose there is one good thing that did come out of this mess," Azula said once they had pulled apart.

"What's that?"

"I met you."

Katara smiled and hugged Azula a little tighter, still being mindful of the burns on her sides.

"Come on, let's get back to camp before Sokka eats everything," Azula said, having noticed the boy's slight obsession with food. Katara laughed and interlaced her fingers with Azula's, as they both walked back to the clearing.

* * *

"As you know, the Avatar State was designed to be a defense mechanism. This can be especially useful for you since you have yet to master all four elements. However, there is a risk, especially if you are unconsciously going into the Avatar State as you have in the past," Guru Pathik explained.

"I know. Avatar Roku told me that if I'm killed in the Avatar State that the cycle will be broken, and the Avatar will cease to exist," Aang recalled. "And the destruction I've caused while in that state scares me."

"Yes. While you are at your most powerful, you are also at your most vulnerable. Just like mastering all the elements, mastering the Avatar State takes years of spiritual discipline."

"Years?! Guru, I don't have years. I have until summer's end," Aang replied anxiously.

"I know, Aang. We have a little over a month before the eclipse comes. That is enough time for you to learn the basics of consciously getting in and out of the Avatar State and controlling yourself while there."

"Will I really need the Avatar State for the eclipse?"

"You may. It's better to be as prepared as possible," Guru Pathik said, handing Aang a bowl full of onion and banana juice. "Now drink up and then off to bed with you. We have much work to do tomorrow."

* * *

It was early morning when the gang packed up camp and mounted their eel hounds to resume the search for Aang.

"We're not too much further from the temple. We should arrive there by midday," Sokka said.

Azula made a conscious effort to reign in on her tendency to be bossy and let Sokka take the lead. Besides, she had found a much better way to pass the time, enjoying the close proximity riding with Katara afforded. _"Who would have thought a simple thing like this could be so satisfying?"_ she thought as she wrapped her arms around the waterbender in front of her.

* * *

"Aang!" He heard Katara call his name, pulling him out of his meditation.

"Looks like we have some company," Guru Pathik said cheerfully.

The pair made their way down the temple steps to find the gang looking for him. Noticing his arrival, Katara ran toward him.

"Aang!" She hugged him, before pulling back to look at him. "We were so worried about you. You shouldn't have run off like that."

Azula couldn't help but feel jealous as she watched Katara embrace him. She knew that Aang was her best friend, but knowing what his feelings were for her bothered her.

"I'm sorry I ran away. I didn't mean to make you guys worry," Aang apologized, looking at everyone. "I wasn't thinking. I was just reacting to what I saw. But in a way, I'm glad that I did for a couple of reasons.

"One of the reasons the spirit of the planet incarnates as the Avatar is so that I can experience what it is to be human. I needed to have that experience of jealousy and heartache. Also, if I hadn't run away, then I might not have reunited with Guru Pathik," Aang explained before bringing his eyes to focus on Katara and Azula. "So, thanks," he finished with a grin, stunning the group.

Guru Pathik gazed at his pupil with pride in his eyes. He had learned quite a bit in the last few days.

"I've made a decision. I'm going to stay here with Guru Pathik for another month to work on continuing the master the Avatar State."

"But what about your firebending?" Zuko asked.

"And your earthbending for that matter?" Toph added, crossing her arms.

"You are welcome to stay and train with Aang when we are not working together," Guru Pathik chimed in.

"Oh! Where are my manners?" Aang said, slapping his forehead. "Everyone, this is Guru Pathik. Guru Pathik, this is everyone."

"It's a pleasure to meet you all," the guru said with a slight bow. "It's almost time for lunch. Would you care to join us?"

"Would I? I'm starving," Sokka replied.

"You're always starving," Zuko rolled his eyes.

"Hey, I'm a growing man," Sokka retorted as he followed Aang and Guru Pathik back into the temple.

* * *

"Onion and banana juice?" Mai asked warily.

"It's really good," Aang said excitedly.

"I'll take your word for it," she replied, pushing her cup closer to Zuko.

"So, what do you guys want to do to prepare for the invasion? Do you want to stay here or…" Aang trailed off.

"Well, your earthbending still needs a lot of work, so I'm going to stay," Toph replied.

"So am I. You still need to get down the basic firebending forms," Zuko added. Glancing over at Mai, he asked her, "Do you mind staying here for awhile?"

"Not at all," she said with a small smile.

"Well, Ty Lee and I have been talking. She told me where Suki and the other Kyoshi Warriors are being held. I'm going to get them out," Sokka said with a determined look on his face.

Azula laughed, although there was nothing malicious about it. She found humor in the impossibility of what Sokka wanted to accomplish.

He glared at her. "What's so funny?"

"There's no way you are going to be able to break them out of Jian prison," she said in a more serious tone, before adding, "At least not by yourself. Even then it will be a tall task."

"I'm going anyway."

"Sokka, no," Katara jumped in. "What you're proposing is just too dangerous."

"I don't care! I love Suki and the thought of her having to spend another day in prison when there's a chance I can save her is too much. I have to try."

Katara sighed. "You're right. But you're not going alone. I'm coming with you."

"So am I," Ty Lee chimed in.

"Count me in as well," Azula said, not wanting Katara going into that place without her.

"You're still not healed enough to do something like that," Katara argued with her.

"You'll need me if you're going to find them in that maze of cells. Besides, it'll take us almost a week to get there on the eel hounds. I'll be fine by then," Azula explained.

"Actually, if you guys want, you can take Appa," Aang offered. "You'll get there much faster."

"Thanks, Aang," Sokka said gratefully.

"So it's settled then," Toph confirmed, as she stretched her arms overhead. "Zuko, Mai, and I will be staying here with Aang and Guru Pathik. The rest of you will go bust out Suki and her warriors. Just make sure you're back here with Appa at least three weeks from now."


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

After making some arrangements in Ba Sing Se with Hakoda and the Council of Five, Sokka, Katara, Azula, and Ty Lee set off to the Fire Nation colonies on the west coast of the Earth Kingdom. It would take about four days to journey to the Taku Ruins, where they agreed to nail down the particulars of their rescue plan. Jian prison was located on an island to the west of the ruins and Pohaui Stronghold. Getting to the island itself undetected posed its own set of challenges that needed to be planned for.

Traveling on Appa would provide Azula with plenty of time to rest and recover physically. The blistering had almost completely healed, but the burn marks were now beginning to scar, causing previously creamy white skin to take on a rough pink texture.

But the emotional wounds were still raw. Azula still didn't quite know how to go about healing them, or that they even needed to be healed. In many ways she felt rattled and not herself, yet she realized she never was herself—just who her father wanted her to be. For the first time in many years she found herself feeling grateful for, instead of taking for granted, the people around her—especially Katara. The waterbender seemed to know exactly what to say or what not to say.

It was late afternoon when Sokka directed Appa to land in a large clearing that looked like a good place for the sky bison to land. There was a nearby river that pooled into a lake, making it the perfect place for Sokka to do some fishing for their dinner. Katara eyed the lake appreciatively, looking forward to practicing her bending and just being with her element.

No sooner had they landed, than Katara was stripping down to her underwrappings, taking Azula and Ty Lee by surprise. Sokka, of course, was used to this and mumbled something about having to do all the work before heading a further up the river on foot to fish.

"I'm going to the lake to practice my waterbending. You want to come?" Katara asked Azula and Ty Lee.

Azula went to follow her, but Ty Lee's hand on her arm held her back.

"Sure, we'll be there in a minute," Azula said with a half smile, watching Katara run off toward the nearby lake before turning to look at the acrobat. "What is it, Ty Lee?"

"I'm just wondering what's going on between you two? Is she your girlfriend?" Ty Lee asked Azula after days of not having had a chance to speak privately to her friend.

"Honestly… I'm not sure. All I know is that I like being around her. But I have a lot of other stuff on my mind right now," Azula said, tugging at the collar of her shirt, trying to cool herself off. Even this late in the day, the summer heat was stifling.

Ty Lee simply smiled at her friend who started to walk toward the lake before running to catch up with her. She could tell by looking at Azula's aura that she was going through a lot of inner turmoil, but there was also a calm streak of blue that wasn't there before Katara had come into her life.

"Aren't you hot, Azula?" Ty Lee asked as she came to Azula's side, referring to the firebender's clothing choice. "It's way too warm to be wearing that."

"I'm fine," she snapped, the heat clearly getting to her. Sweat was now dripping down her face as the sun continued to beat down on the earth.

"Hey, want to go for a swim? The water is perfect!" Katara called out from the water up to the pair, who had just walked out onto a rock ledge overlooking the lake.

Ty Lee didn't need to be asked twice. She swiftly removed her sleeveless top and shorts so that she was in her underwrappings. With a front flip, she gracefully dove into the water, enjoying the relief from the stifling heat.

Azula didn't move to join her friend. Instead she sat down, looking miserable in this weather. With a furrowed brow, Katara swam over to her.

"Come on, the water will help cool you off," Katara encouraged her.

"I'd rather stay here," Azula replied.

"Well, you should at least take off some of those clothes," she gently teased her.

Azula simply shook her head and looked away from the waterbender. Katara frowned and hopped up out of the water to sit beside Azula.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Her voice grew tighter.

"Sokka won't be back from fishing for another half hour. It's just us girls. No one will see you," Katara assured her, trying to guess at what might be bothering the firebender.

"I'm fine here, Katara. Just go back in the water," Azula said, not wanting to talk anymore.

With a sigh, the waterbender slipped back down in to the lake, wondering what was bothering Azula.

* * *

"Azula, what can you tell me about the prison where Suki is?" Sokka asked after the group finished cleaning up after dinner.

"Jian is a heavily guarded military prison that was built within a structure similar to Pohaui Stronghold. Each prisoner is confined to a solitary cell that's barely large enough for a grown man to lie down in, and there are hundreds of cells that are purposefully set up like a maze, making it nearly impossible to escape. Not to mention that the guards are under strict orders to kill prisoners if there is even a hint of an escape attempt."

Katara, Sokka, and Ty Lee looked at Azula, stricken.

"In my opinion, it's the Fire Nation's most brutal prison holding. Even I hated going there to interrogate prisoners," she admitted.

"But, Azula, I thought the Boiling Rock was the worst," Ty Lee said.

"Until Jian was built, it was. This place makes the Boiling Rock look like a walk in the park."

Sokka made a mental note to ask about the Boiling Rock later. "So any ideas on how we can get in and out without anyone getting killed?"

"It depends on how good everyone's stealth skills are. Ty Lee and I excel. How about you two?" Azula asked the siblings.

"I'm good enough," Sokka replied.

"I'm not great, but I've gotten a lot better in the last few months. Plus, I've had some experience getting people out of the clutches of the Fire Nation," Katara explained.

Azula offered her a small smile before speaking again. "Okay, that will make things somewhat easier getting in. Getting out will be trickier. I know that we are breaking out the Kyoshi Warriors, who undoubtedly are trained in stealth, but we need to be prepared for the worst."

Sokka cringed. "Like what?"

"Jian was designed to break the spirit of the enemies of the Fire Nation. I don't know what kind of condition they will be in," Azula replied.

Sokka felt himself starting to get angry with Azula. If it weren't for her, Suki wouldn't even be in that place, he realized. Azula could sense the growing animosity directed at her.

"How could you be so cruel as to send Suki someplace like that?" Sokka asked, his eyes narrowing at Azula. Katara put a hand on his arm to try and calm him down.

"It wasn't my decision to send the Kyoshi Warriors to Jian. Ever since its construction, the Fire Lord's ruling stated that all POWs are to be sent there until the warden determines if, when, and where they should be transferred," she explained.

"If it _had_ been up to you, where would you have sent them?" he asked, still upset.

"I don't know." Azula honestly hadn't given it a second thought at the time of the warriors' imprisonment. _"Did I ever even think for myself?"_

"It doesn't matter now, Sokka," Katara said. "We'll work together to get Suki out of there."

"You're right," he sighed, less upset but still visibly worried. _"Hang on, Suki."_

* * *

After the evening's conversation, Azula needed to take her mind off of the thoughts swirling through her head, and Katara was more than happy to help in that regard. The waterbender suggested they spend some time by the lake before heading to bed. Sokka and Ty Lee both knew what that meant, and Sokka tried not to think about what his sister was doing with the former princess of the Fire Nation.

Finally alone, Katara pulled Azula into her arms and kissed her soundly. Azula returned the kiss with equal passion, wanting to lose herself in the other girl. They stayed like that for long moments, before Katara's hands wandered down Azula's back. As Katara went to pull up Azula's shirt, the firebender gripped onto her wrists, stopping her movement.

"What's wrong?" Katara asked, breaking off their kiss. "Am I moving too fast?"

"No, that's not it."

"Then what is it?"

"I don't want you to see my body," Azula admitted quietly.

Katara looked at her, surprise and confusion written all over her face. "But I've seen it before," she said.

"It was different before."

"I don't understand."

Azula sighed. "I don't know how to explain it."

Katara looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, trying to figure out what brought this on. Suddenly, Azula's behavior earlier in the day made sense. Katara realized that it wasn't modesty driving Azula to keep her body covered. It was vanity.

"You're still beautiful, you know," Katara said, her blue eyes drawing Azula in before bringing her lips to meet the firebender's. Once again, she tried to lift the clothing away from her body.

"Katara…" Azula pulled away this time. The waterbender saw a flicker of shame in the girl's eyes before it was replaced by anger. But she knew the anger wasn't directed at her. It was anger toward the man that scarred her.

"I'm sorry," Katara said, knowing she had pushed Azula too far unnecessarily. She stepped closer, closing the gap between the two of them. She slowly lifted her hand to the firebender's face, grazing Azula's cheek with her knuckles. "I shouldn't have pushed. I won't do that again unless you want me to." She smiled at the girl, hoping to abate her anger. It worked, a little.

Azula sighed and closed her eyes, relaxing a bit as Katara pulled her into a strong embrace.

"I still think you're beautiful," she whispered into her ear.

* * *

"_Hey, Azula?"_

"_Yeah?" she answered, bringing her eyes away from the star studded sky to turn and look at her brother lying beside her in the sand._

"_What do you dream about being when you grow up?"_

"_Fire Lord, of course," she replied._

"_But you can't be Fire Lord. Uncle Iroh will be after Grandpa passes on, and then after him, Cousin Lu Ten."_

"_That's not what Dad said. He said that I'm going to be Fire Lord one day," she explained matter-of-fact._

_Zuko looked at his sister, confused, but before he could pursue his line of thought, Azula asked him, "What do you dream about being when you grow up?"_

"_I want to be a great general, like Uncle Iroh," he replied._

"_General Zuzu," she teased him._

"_Argh! I wish you wouldn't call me that anymore, Azula," Zuko whined._

_She giggled and brought her gaze back up to the sky. "I wish we didn't have to leave Ember Island tomorrow," she said wistfully._

"_We'll be back next summer," he said, trying to cheer her up._

"_Yeah, I know," she said with a sigh. "I'll still miss it."_

_Little did they know how much things would change in a year's time. Neither of them had been to Ember Island since._

Azula woke from her sleep and gazed up at the stars, allowing her mind to float back to her dream. It had been a long time since she had even thought about the yearly summer vacations at the family beach house. Ozai would often leave Ember Island a week earlier than the rest of his family, and Ursa would let her children sleep outdoors on the beach. Ozai never approved of such behavior, saying it was beneath their royal status.

That summer vacation was the last time she had slept on the ground until recently. Even when hunting the Avatar and her brother and uncle in the past, she had always slept in a bed. The royal procession _was_ deadweight, but the beauty of using war machines was that they were large enough to accommodate all the requirements of royalty. As a princess, sleeping on the ground had been beneath her.

"_You're not a princess anymore,"_ Toph's words echoed in her mind. It made her feel uneasy just thinking about it. Closing her eyes, she fell back into a restless sleep.

* * *

The group got an early start the next day, seeing as Sokka didn't want to waste any more time getting to Suki. Ty Lee occupied herself by braiding the parts of Appa's coat that were nearest to the saddle, which the sky bison thoroughly enjoyed. Katara and Azula sat side-by-side holding hands and enjoying the closeness. Finally, Azula broke the silence.

"Katara?"

"Yeah?"

"What do you dream about being when you grow up?" Azula asked, echoing her brother's question to her eight years ago.

"I dream of being like my mom," she replied, unconsciously bringing her hand up to touch her necklace. "What about you?"

"I don't know. I used to say Fire Lord, but those were my father's words. I never really thought about it. Zuko used to say that he wanted to grow up to be a great general, like Iroh."

"Was there anyone you admired growing up besides your father? What about your mother?"

"No," came the simple reply, but there was a hint of bitterness in the firebender's voice.

Katara lightly squeezed Azula's hand. It was a small gesture to let her know that she was there for her, bringing a slight smile to Azula's face.

* * *

A large shadow passing overhead caused Daha to bring his gaze up toward the sky. Narrowing his eyes, he saw the unmistakable form of the Avatar's sky bison.

Quickly reigning his mongoose dragon to a halt, the assassin took note of the direction the flying beast was headed. Pulling his mount around, he began to head west.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Over the next three days, Sokka, Katara, Azula, and Ty Lee continued to travel west—only stopping when Appa needed to rest. Because of this, they made excellent time and reached at the Taku Ruins earlier than they anticipated—arriving there in the late morning of their fourth day of travel. The sky was overcast, which they quickly realized was a blessing in disguise.

"Okay, we need to firm up the details of how we're going to get on Jian's island," Sokka said after they had landed. "I'd like to leave here as soon as we have that solidified."

"Sounds good to me," Katara replied, and Ty Lee and Azula agreed.

"I have a good idea of how we should approach this," Azula began.

"What are you thinking?" Sokka asked.

"Jian was built against the side of a mountain which is nearly impossible to traverse except from the side that faces the prison holding. Obviously, this was done on purpose. Because of that, there are no patrolmen on the mountain itself, just around the shores of the island," Azula explained. "If we leave here in a few hours, we should arrive there around nightfall. It will be a lot easier to get onto the island under the cloak of darkness. Katara, can you create some clouds to cover us in?"

"Yes, I can do that," she affirmed.

"Okay, good. With the cloud cover, we should be able to get onto the island and hideout on top of the mountain without being seen."

"Then what?" Sokka asked.

"Then we wait. We'll need to observe what the routine is on the outer walls before attempting to break into the prison itself."

* * *

"You okay, Ty Lee?" Sokka asked, noticing the girl's normally chipper attitude somewhat subdued.

"No, not really," the acrobat sighed. "I feel conflicted. I mean, I am Fire Nation, yet I'm about to break into one of their prisons. And it's to rescue people I helped put there in the first place while fighting for my country. I know that what I'm doing now is the right thing—helping the Avatar bring an end to the war. But by doing the right thing, I've become a traitor in the eyes of my country."

"It must be hard knowing you can't go home," he said, trying to imagine what that would be like.

"It's probably not as hard on me as it is on Zuko, Mai, and Azula. I haven't been home in two years, so I'm used to it," she shrugged. "One of the nice things about being in the circus was that I never stayed in one place for very long."

* * *

"How are you holding up?" Katara asked Azula, who had just finished going through her firebending forms. "Do you feel like you're strong enough to do this or should we wait?"

"I'll be okay as long as I don't take a direct hit to my ribs. Thanks to you, these burns weren't nearly as bad as they should have been."

"How are you otherwise?" Katara's voice was softer now, her blue eyes imploring.

Azula broke her gaze from Katara's and instead focused on a section of the ruins off in the distance. She was silent for a moment, hesitating whether or not to voice her thoughts.

"It still hurts," she finally said. _"I wonder if this is how Zuko felt when he was banished. I can't believe I'm even thinking this, but I wish he was here."_

Katara took Azula's hand and brought her down to sit. They sat in silence for some time, Katara patiently waiting for Azula to say more.

"I think I finally understand what my brother went through. Even though my father humiliated him in front of the Fire Nation by burning his face and banishing him, Zuko still wanted his love and acceptance. My father's love and acceptance—those were things I always thought I had. But it turned out that I was no different from anyone else in the Fire Nation. My father had me tortured and tried to kill me…" Azula trailed off, her emotions threatening to take over.

She didn't know how to explain what she felt—a mixture of anger towards her father and herself, hurt over his rejection, and confusion over what she was to make of her life now.

"The past few weeks have seemed so surreal, almost like I'm in some twisted dream. I have no title, no nation, no purpose. I would say I want it to all go back to the way it was, but I don't. I realized that I was just my father's tool," she finished bitterly.

"You're free to make up your mind now, Azula, and free to make your own choices. It's not going to be easy, but remember that we're here for you." Katara paused, placing a soft kiss on Azula's palm. "I'm here for you."

Azula offered Katara a small smile before leaning over to capture the waterbender's lips with her own. Katara understood that Azula didn't want to talk or think anymore for the time being. Burying her hands in the prodigy's raven tresses, she pulled the girl closer to her.

* * *

The overcast sky provided ample cover for Appa as he flew toward the island. They made it past Pohaui Stronghold without being detected, and as they reached the shores of Jian's island, Appa began to make his descent.

Katara settled into her stance and formed a cloud around the sky bison, keeping them hidden from the patrolmen on the beaches. Sokka and Azula maneuvered Appa slowly—so as not to raise suspicion—to the peak of the mountain. Once there, they were able to settle down a little lower on the mountain where they could stay undetected and plan for the next stage of their rescue attempt.

"Alright, everyone, we've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow. Let's try to get some sleep," Sokka said. Although he doubted he would get much rest knowing how close Suki was.

"One of us should stay awake to keep watch, just in case," Azula realized.

"I'll do it," Katara volunteered.

"Thanks, Katara. Wake me up in five hours and I'll take over for you," Sokka said.

* * *

_Chains bit into her wrists and ankles. Her body was pulled taut against the wall, her hair had fallen in front of her face. Through strands of hair, she could see her two friends approaching her._

_The weapons mistress pulled out a knife and began to carve the Fire Nation emblem into her thigh, while the acrobat hit pressure points designed to maximize pain before taking a knife of her own and dragging it across Azula's stomach. She tried to cry out to them to tell them to stop, but she couldn't make a sound._

_The pair began to distort and meld into one person. They morphed into an imposing figure, all muscle and power. She couldn't make out his face. Fire formed at his fist, and he punched her in the stomach, burning her. She couldn't breathe._

_Then she heard the laugh—that cold, merciless laugh that belonged to her father. The man before her lowered down, and she finally saw his face._

"_You've disappointed me, Azula," he snarled. "You know what happens when you disappoint Daddy."_

_Her eyes widened in fear as he raised his palm, the red flames dancing there as he formed another fist, this time aimed directly at her left eye._

Katara watched Azula toss and turn in her sleep. Unable to continue seeing her distressed, she crept over to the firebender's sleeping bag and gently shook her awake.

Azula's eyes flew open, confused for a moment before focusing on Katara.

"You were having a bad dream," Katara explained softly, running her hands along the girl's shoulders.

The realness of the dream was still with Azula, and it took her several moments to get her breathing under control. She pushed herself up to sit and focused on Katara's warm hands that were now smoothing out her hair. Azula wasn't used to this kind of affection—not since she was a small child—but she was glad for it.

"You want to talk about it?" Katara asked her.

"No, it was just a dream," Azula replied, not wanting to think about it. She sighed. Thoughts of what was to come later in the day began to creep up. Now that the time was getting closer, she was beginning to question why she was even here.

"This has nothing to do with my dream, but I have mixed feelings about what I'm about to do to break these warriors out," Azula admitted. "My whole life it's been drilled into my head that this war was in the best interest of the world, the best interest of my nation. It's hard to change that mentality even after everything that's happened to me lately."

"Then why are you doing it?" Katara asked.

Azula paused before answering. "I couldn't let you and Ty Lee go in there without me."

Katara smiled warmly at her. Even though the ex-princess didn't feel any sense of responsibility to help the Kyoshi Warriors, at least she felt a sense of responsibility to help someone besides herself. And the fact that she was part of the reason made her happy.

* * *

"Have you noticed a pattern yet?" Katara asked Sokka after he came back from his lookout point.

"Yeah, I have. There's a guard change once every six hours," Sokka informed the group. "Conveniently enough, the guards tend to move in groups of four. I think the best thing to do is work our way down to the prison wall right before the scheduled change and take out the nearest group about to get off from their shift. Ty Lee, I think you should do most of the work here."

"Not a problem," she said with a grin. "Then what?"

"Then, we take their uniforms and work our way inside the prison itself."

"I'm impressed, Sokka," Azula said.

He grinned, puffing his chest out a bit with pride. Katara rolled her eyes causing Ty Lee to giggle.

"Okay, so we've got that down," Katara said. "What do we do after that?" she looked at her brother and Azula expectantly.

"Each of the Kyoshi Warriors are in their own cell. Mai, Ty Lee, and I captured six of them. When I was last here, all except Suki were in the same cellblock. Hopefully they haven't been moved elsewhere in the prison, but I doubt they were."

"So we'll have to split up," Katara realized.

Azula nodded. "Yes. We have to be extremely careful. Remember, the guards are under orders to kill prisoners without hesitation if they suspect anything is amiss."

"What about the other prisoners? The ones we aren't trying to break out? Is there a risk of something happening to them?" Katara asked worriedly.

"Only if they are suspected of escaping or aiding in our escape plan," Azula replied.

"Alright, so how do you think we should split up once we're in?" Ty Lee asked.

"Well, you and I definitely shouldn't be paired up, because last time the Kyoshi Warriors saw either of us it wasn't under the best of circumstances. They won't trust us," Azula reasoned.

"All I know is that I'm going to go after Suki," Sokka said.

"Ty Lee should go with you. I need to stick with Katara because I won't be able to bend while I'm in the prison."

"Why not?" Sokka asked.

"Because unlike every other firebender that guards Jian, my fire is blue. That would be a dead giveaway to my real identity."

"Good point."

"I'll show you two where you need to go. After that, you're on your own. Remember, you need to be prepared for. If Suki isn't in the condition to escape, then you're going to have to move her to another location on pretense of interrogation. Hopefully you'll be able to get out of sight from other guards long enough to bring her out of the prison."

"About that. How are we going to get out of here with them once we get in?" Sokka asked.

"As much as I hate not nailing things down to the most specific of details, we're going to have to improvise. There's only so much we can plan for, and I've learned the hard way that you can plan all you want and it'll blow up in your face anyway. We're all skilled enough to do this. Just be ready to do whatever needs to be done. Do not hesitate."

Sokka wasn't sure what that meant exactly, but he was determined to do whatever it took to rescue Suki and her warriors.

* * *

As the sun was setting, the group began to traverse down the north side of the mountain connecting to the outer wall, doing their best to stay hidden behind various rock formations. As they got closer to the wall, the sun had completely lowered over the horizon, and they were shrouded in darkness.

Azula nodded at Ty Lee, giving her the silent command to take out the guards. With silent yet deadly precision, the acrobat leapt onto the roof lookout tower. Twisting her body partially downward, she glanced inside the room housing the guards. All four were facing south, looking out over the prison yard, which was lined with dozens of guards.

Taking a deep breath, Ty Lee slipped into the tower. With a rapid succession of well-placed punches, she systematically took out each guard, who all happened to be female. She discreetly stuck her arm out the north side of the tower, gesturing to Sokka, Katara, and Azula that she had been successful.

The trio quietly made their way down to meet Ty Lee to find all four guards unconscious. The acrobat was busy pulling the clothes off of one of the girl's bodies.

"We have twenty minutes until the guard change," Sokka whispered. "How long will this keep them out for?"

"A few hours at least," Ty Lee replied quietly.

The group quickly pulled the uniforms over them, which included full armor and helmets. Sokka and Katara then made two trips taking the unconscious guards out of the tower and up the mountain a ways, out of sight. There, they tied them up and gagged them—just in case they came to.

The siblings arrived back to the lookout tower in the nick of time. The guard change was about to take place.

Four guards came to relieve them of their duty, which happened rather smoothly. The group then walked down the tower steps to head toward the yard. This was the only time they had to speak privately now that they were inside the prison holding.

"Alright, after we get to the yard, we're going to head down into the main part of the prison and split up. You remember where I told you to look for Suki, right?" Azula asked Sokka quietly.

"Yes, I remember," Sokka said with a nod. Azula had provided him with enough detail that he could practically visualize himself walking to her cell.

"Okay, this is it. Hopefully, we'll see each other soon," she finished as they arrived to the tower's exit.

"Ty Lee, keep my brother safe," Katara whispered to the acrobat so that Sokka couldn't hear.

"I will. Keep my princess safe," Ty Lee replied with a smile.

With a brief nod to each other, the group of four split off into pairs—each heading to different ends of the prison.

"You're enjoying yourself, aren't you?" Katara asked Azula. She saw the way the firebender's eyes lit up when she was implementing a strategy successfully.

"I am," she agreed with a wry smile. "Now comes the fun part."

The pair turned down a long corridor that led to the cellblock that held the Kyoshi Warriors.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Sokka and Ty Lee began to make their way into the eastern quarter of the prison. Getting to Suki wouldn't be too difficult, so long as they followed Azula's directions exactly. As they continued to travel along the maze of hallways, they noticed pairs of guards stationed at the ends of each hallway, making Sokka begin to wonder how exactly they were going to pull this off. There seemed to be a lot more guards around than Azula had said there had been previously.

Finally reaching the third basement level, the pair turned down the fifth row of cells and stopped in front of the sixth door on the right. Taking a deep breath, Sokka peered through the cell door's small window.

"She's not here," Sokka said quietly, the worry he felt evident in his voice. "And from the looks of it, no one has occupied this cell for awhile."

"Maybe Azula got the cells mixed up?" Ty Lee said hopefully, but internally doubted it. Azula's ability to remember the tiniest of details was one of her strengths.

"Hey there!" a gruff, but not unfriendly voice called out to them. They both turned to see a guard, who had noticed their confusion, addressing them. "Need some help?"

"We were sent down here to retrieve a prisoner for interrogation," Sokka replied.

"There's no one in that cell," the guard explained, as he began to walk toward them. Even with the helmets Sokka and Ty Lee wore, their faces were still partially visible, and the guard noticed Sokka's dark skin and blue eyes. While dark skin was rare but not unusual, no one in the Fire Nation had blue eyes. Realizing something wasn't right, his expression turned to one of suspicion.

"We must have been given incorrect information," Ty Lee said, noticing the guard's changing demeanor and hoping to diffuse the situation long enough for them to get out of there.

"I haven't seen either of you here before," the guard continued, staring at Sokka and ignoring Ty Lee.

"We're new," Sokka explained lamely.

"I'll just bet. Who sent you?" His eyes narrowed.

"Colonel Ham," Ty Lee replied, much to Sokka's relief. He didn't know the names of the Fire Nation's military leaders; let alone which one would be in charge of Jian.

"Really?" the guard said in disbelief. He then lifted his hand to signal with it. Sokka and Ty Lee noticed the other guards stationed at either end of the hallway start to move close to them.

"Look, the longer we take to bring this prisoner to him, the more upset he'll be," Sokka said.

"I'm sure he won't mind, considering that he's not even here, Water Tribesman."

Sokka gulped, realizing that they were in serious trouble as four guards converged on them. Several more had made their way closer to the cell row they were in, having noticed something was amiss.

"_How are we going to get out of this?"_ he thought to himself, as he dropped into a fighting stance. He recalled Azula's words to him. _"Be ready to do whatever needs to be done. Do not hesitate." _His eyes shifting to Ty Lee, he knew what he had to do.

* * *

"You okay?" Azula asked Katara as they continued to travel through the western cellblock.

"Being in this place is just bringing up some bad memories, that's all," Katara explained, shuddering a bit.

Azula placed her hand briefly on the waterbender's shoulder. "I know. I was there."

Katara smiled slightly, shaking her head. For some reason, knowing that Azula knew what it was like made it easier to deal with.

As they continued to walk, Azula's eyes shifted around taking in as much detail as possible. Much to her chagrin, there were more guards posted throughout the cellblock than there had been during her prior visits. While not impossible, this breakout attempt was going to be far from easy, she realized.

After several more minutes of walking, the girls came to the row of cells holding Suki's warriors. Azula nodded slightly at Katara as they came to stop outside one of the cells. The waterbender understood the command, and slipped into the warrior's cell while Azula waited outside. The former princess knew this was standard procedure, so their activity wouldn't be enough to raise suspicion just yet.

The girl inside the cell tensed as she heard the door open. She had just recently been given her midday meal, so she knew it wasn't time for food again. Instinctively, she braced herself for a fight. It wouldn't be the first time a guard had come in looking to rough her up.

Katara noticed the girl's stiff posture and moved to remove her helmet, holding her hands up in a non-threatening gesture. Even without her face paint, she recognized the warrior as Suki's second-in-command.

"Isaye, do you remember me?" Katara asked quietly.

"Yes, you're the Avatar's friend. Katara, right?" she replied, relaxing somewhat.

Katara nodded.

"Is the Avatar here?" Isaye asked hopefully.

"No, Aang's not here. I'm here with my brother, Sokka, and two others." Katara hesitated for a moment, but if she was going to get the Kyoshi Warriors out of here, they needed to know who was helping them. "We came here with Azula and Ty Lee to get you out."

Anger flashed across Isaye's face. "What do you mean you came here with them?" she asked indignantly, the volume of her voice rising.

"Shh, keep it down," Katara pleaded. "We don't have a lot of time. Please just trust me that they are on our side now."

"I don't understand. Why wouldn't the princess just release us?"

"Because she's not the princess of the Fire Nation anymore. A lot has happened recently, but I can't get into all of that right now. The Fire Lord has put a bounty on her head, so we have to do this as discreetly as possible."

Isaye couldn't hide her surprise completely but knew Katara was right. Time was of the essence. "Okay, so what do you propose?"

"First, I'm going to speak with each of the Kyoshi Warriors to let them know that we're here. Except for Suki, you're all being kept in the same cell row."

"Do you know where she is?"

"Since she is your leader, she was placed on the other side of the prison. Sokka and Ty Lee have gone to get her."

"Okay, so after you talk to the others, what then?"

"Just be prepared for an unwanted visitor," Katara said and Isaye smiled in understanding.

* * *

With a half-hearted effort, Sokka lunged at Ty Lee with his club, taking the acrobat by surprise, but her instincts enabled her to easily dodge his attack. She quickly realized what Sokka was doing, but knew better than to argue with him. It was either this or they both get caught.

Seeing Sokka attack his apparent comrade was enough to give the guards pause, and it had the intended result. All except the guard with the gruff voice assumed that Ty Lee had been duped into believing that the boy was in fact a Fire Nation guard, and that she herself was one of them.

The acrobat countered with a quick series of punches, careful not to actually incapacitate Sokka, but hard enough to make it look realistic. Thankful that Ty Lee had caught on, he fell to the ground and allowed himself to be taken prisoner. He could see the acrobat's gray eyes moisten through her helmet as he was unceremoniously thrown into the cell that had once belonged to Suki.

"We'll let the warden deal with you," the guard with the gruff voice said before slamming the door and turning toward Ty Lee. He still didn't trust her, but knew that she wasn't of Water Tribe descent. "I'm sure the warden will like to have a word with you as well."

"Of course," Ty Lee said, trying to keep her voice from breaking.

"Come with us," another guard said, as two of them grabbed a hold of the acrobat's arms and began to lead her back upstairs. She allowed them to take her, hoping that she could keep up her façade long enough to get everyone out of here alive.

* * *

"Are they ready?" Azula asked Katara as the two of them walked back to the barracks.

"Yes, they're ready. Do you really think this will work?" Katara asked.

"It will as long as nothing goes wrong."

As they turned the corner leading back out to the prison yard, they spotted Ty Lee, now without her helmet, being escorted across the yard by two guards and over to the warden's quarters. Azula's eyes narrowed as Katara's widened. _"Where's Sokka?"_ she thought worriedly.

"Come on," Azula said, lightly tugging on Katara's arm. "Let's find out what's going on."

They casually walked in the direction of the warden's quarters. They were closer than Ty Lee and the guards she was with, and so made it there first. The acrobat caught sight of them and breathed a small sigh of relief. Maybe somehow they could help her out of this mess.

"Sorry, boys, but we're scheduled to meet with the warden now," Azula explained, cutting the trio off as they reached the door leading to his quarters. "Surely, you can wait."

"We can't. There's been a security breach," one of the guards explained somewhat anxiously.

"Oh?" Azula asked, suspecting that the guard's anxiousness had little to do with any security breach and something more personal.

"A Water Tribesman disguised himself as a guard. She was with him," the other added, looking pointedly at Ty Lee.

"I see. Well, we don't mind taking her off your hands since we're going in to see him anyway," Azula coolly suggested, fixing her gaze on the anxious guard.

He shifted slightly, glancing at the warden's door, then at Ty Lee, and finally at the other guard, who was looking at him expectantly.

"That'll be fine," the calmer guard replied, realizing his partner—who he'd noticed was rather jumpy lately—wasn't going to make the decision. "Just tell the warden to come down to the sub-three eastern cellblock when you're done."

"Of course," Azula agreed as she and Katara moved closer to grip Ty Lee's arms. Katara made sure to avert her gaze so as not to raise suspicion of her race as they made the exchange with the other guards.

The girls watched for a moment as the two guards took their leave before entering the door that led to the warden's quarters. There was a small corridor, which was thankfully unoccupied at the moment and contained several more doors leading to various rooms. Azula searched her memory quickly before turning to one of the smaller rooms on the left.

"Where are we going?" Katara asked.

"Supply room," Azula said, as she opened the door, revealing a room packed with weapons and prisoner's food rations. Casting a quick look around, she gestured for Katara and Ty Lee to enter before she closed the door quietly behind them.

"Ty Lee, what happened? Where's Sokka?" Katara asked anxiously.

The acrobat sighed heavily, glancing down at the ground before looking back up at Azula and Katara. She proceeded to tell them everything that had happened.

* * *

Sokka groaned in pain as he shifted up from his spot on the floor. The guards had given him a beating to "make him more agreeable for the warden." His past experience with Fire Nation soldiers had led him to believe that most were rather brutish and unintelligent, with the exception of those in charge. Unfortunately, the guard—who's name he had overhead was Alok—wasn't as stupid as he looked.

He sighed. His only hope now was his sister, the ex-Fire Nation princess, and one gray-eyed acrobat.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Miserable, Sokka closed his eyes, his mind drifting to Suki. _"Where is she?"_

The sound of his cell door opening caught his attention, and he looked up to see a shaft of reddish light making its way in. Standing in the doorway was Alok, who was wearing a smug grin.

"The warden is ready for you," he said, pulling the boy up to his feet and pushing him out the door. Stumbling, he barely managed to keep his footing—the only thing stopping him from falling flat on his face was an arm that had reached out to catch him.

"You better be cooperative," the guard who caught him warned. He recognized that voice. _"Azula,"_ he realized with some relief. But he understood that her words held multiple layers of meaning—don't do anything stupid to get himself killed and to do exactly as she said.

Alok and Azula then gripped onto his arms—Alok more tightly, causing Sokka to wince in discomfort—and led him back through the maze of cells. Eventually, the trio came to a dark room, which compared to the cells that housed the prisoners seemed incredibly spacious. Sokka felt himself being pushed down into a chair. Alok began strapping his arms down to the armrests, and he had to hold in the instinct to fight back. Instead, he watched as Azula closed the door to the interrogation room, shrouding the space in total darkness.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Alok asked the girl, clearly annoyed. "I can't see a damn thing."

"That's the idea," she said in a low, but deadly voice. The guard was suddenly very aware of her close proximity. Then there was a sharp pain in his back, as the former princess shot a small jolt of electricity into his body, stunning him.

Alok dropped to the floor like a sack of potatoes. Seconds later, a soft blue light filled the chamber. Sokka saw Azula leaning over the fallen man's body.

"Did you?" he asked, unsure of what had happened in the darkness.

"No. I created a smaller charge of electricity to stun him. I wasn't sure if it would work since I've never done it before," she explained, looking almost pleased with herself. It was something she had thought might work in theory, and she was glad she was correct. It was easier to charge up for this technique than a full-on lightning blast, and she could use it more discreetly.

Azula then sent out a stream of fire at one of the nearby torches on the wall, filling the room with a warm orange glow. She deftly removed the leather restraints that held Sokka against the interrogation chair, before moving to a corner of the room and leaning down. She began rummaging through a pack she had dropped off before coming down to retrieve the boy from his cell.

Sokka got up from the chair gingerly, slowly stretching his arms and legs, examining the extent of his injuries. There were a couple of deep bruises along his ribs from where the guards had beat him, but fortunately nothing seemed broken. He was sure his body was littered with bruises, but the ones on his torso appeared to be the worse.

"Here," he heard Azula say from behind him. He turned to look at her, where she stood with a clean uniform. He took it from her. "And wear this helmet instead," she ordered, handing him one that would cover the top half of his face.

While Sokka quickly changed, Azula looked at the fallen guard. "When your done, help me put him in the chair. In case he comes to anytime soon, he won't be able to warn anyone."

"Way to think ahead," Sokka replied, walking over to Azula's side and helping her lift the beefy guard into the chair.

"I left some weapons over there," she said, nodding to the left side of the room. "I didn't have time to find your club, but there should be something you can use," she finished as she started to strap Alok down.

With a look of surprise, Sokka walked over to the wall and started to look through the assortment of weapons. "How did you get all this in here without anyone becoming suspicious?" he asked.

"It's an interrogation room. There's nothing suspicious about preparing it for a prisoner," she explained.

He paused in his examination of weaponry and eyed the firebender warily.

"What?" she asked without looking at Sokka, feeling his eyes on her as she pulled the chest restraint around Alok.

"Nothing," he said, unsure of how to say what he was thinking.

"Spill it, Sokka," she said, now bringing her eyes to meet his.

"You just seem to know what your doing," he began. "And you said that you came here to interrogate prisoners…"

"I do know what I'm doing," she interrupted, and Sokka's face twisted in anger. He still had a hard time reconciling Azula as an enemy and Azula as an ally.

"I know what your thinking," she continued, seemingly unfazed by his reaction. But if they were going to get out of this prison alive, Azula knew it would do no good to have him distracted if it could be helped. "I know how to prepare an interrogation room because I obviously questioned prisoners. I never used any of physical methods of torture to get information. I'm scary enough as it is," she said with a wry smirk. "Simply displaying these items creates an element of fear in most people. And no, I never interrogated, Suki," she finished, knowing where his mind was going.

Sokka visibly relaxed, taking a small comfort in that. However, it was short lived. Just because Azula didn't interrogate Suki didn't mean someone else didn't. "Azula, if Suki wasn't in her cell, where would she be?"

"Katara, Ty Lee, and I checked the records. She's been transferred to the Boiling Rock."

"No…" Sokka's heart fell as his head dropped into his hands.

Azula wasn't quite sure what to say or do. In the past she would have rolled her eyes and told him to man up, but that didn't seem like it would get much accomplished at the moment.

"Sokka, we're running out of time. Katara and Ty Lee are waiting for us," she finally said, trying to get him to focus on the here and now. "If we're not there, the whole mission will be in jeopardy."

"You're right," Sokka agreed, his voice a little shaky. Taking a few deep breaths to steady himself, he followed the former princess out of the interrogation room.

* * *

It was nearing dusk as Katara and Ty Lee walked silently down the corridor of the Kyoshi Warrior's cell row. Two other guards walked in front of them, pushing carts containing meager food rations for the prisoners' dinners. It was almost time to implement the next step of the escape plan.

The guards stopped at the cell doors of Isaye and Kira, who's cells were across from each other. Ty Lee and Katara stepped up to take the rations from the cart. Katara kept her water pouch discreetly tucked underneath her battledress, the cork unstopped as she waited for them to open the cell doors.

As the guards stepped into the cells, Katara lashed the back of one guard's head with her water whip, while Ty Lee hit the neck of the other guard with her knuckles. Each Kyoshi Warrior expected this, and caught the falling guards in their arms. Both warriors were already in the prison guard uniforms Katara had given them earlier in the afternoon. Grabbing the helmets off of the now dispatched guards, they placed them over their heads—hiding their matted hair and unclean faces.

"So far so good," Katara said softly to Isaye, and the warrior nodded, looking across the way to see Kira stepping out of her cell. Both eyed Ty Lee warily, but they trusted Katara enough to see this through.

They closed the doors of the cells, locking the guards inside. Those stationed along each end of the corridor were none the wiser as to what had just happened. Now they just had to get the other three out, but it would be a problem if Azula hadn't been successful with Sokka. As it was, they were late.

Katara bit down on her lip, hoping that Sokka was okay as she pushed the cart a little further. Two guards rounded the corner then, looking to be in a hurry. The waterbender's eyes lit up a bit as she realized who it was. Relief washed over her at seeing the both of them safe.

"Sorry to interrupt," Azula began, keeping up the act in case any other guards overheard them, "but we need to take a few of these prisoner's up to the interrogation rooms."

"We'd be happy to help," Ty Lee replied, easily playing along.

Azula nodded her ascent, and they immediately went to open cell doors of the remaining Kyoshi Warriors.

Isaye and Kira couldn't hide their contempt for Azula and Ty Leee completely, but they kept a lid on it for the sake of the mission. They were both well aware of the animosity coming toward them, but at the moment, neither of them cared. All that mattered was getting out of Jian prison alive.

"_Six 'guards' to three prisoners. Perfect,"_ Azula thought, as she and Katara went to escort Amane out of her cell. Sokka and Ty Lee followed suit with Erina. Isaye and Kira went to retrieve the last of the warriors, Fusa.

Their hands fell on the warriors' arms leading them up toward the interrogation rooms of this cell block. The group moved in silence, the promise of freedom so close for the female fighters. Several moments later, they arrived to a large interrogation room, and all nine stepped inside.

"Ty Lee and I left uniforms in here for you three," Katara explained, and Amane, Erina, and Fusa immediately began to change as Sokka averted his gaze.

"Where's Suki?" Isaye asked Sokka now that they were away from the prying eyes and ears of the prison.

The boy shook his head. "She's not here. She's been transferred to another prison."

"I'm sorry, Sokka," Katara said, pulling her brother into a hug. They held onto each other tightly for a few moments—Katara finding relief in knowing her brother was more or less physically okay. Azula watched them, realizing that was probably what she should have said to the boy earlier.

A shrill ringing sound suddenly cut through the air, interrupting the moment and causing everyone to go on the defensive.

"What is that noise?" Katara asked worriedly, looking at Azula.

"It's a security alarm," she explained with a scowl. "They know something's wrong. We have to get out of here as fast as possible."

"Okay, is everyone ready?" Sokka asked.

"Yes, we're ready," Isaye replied, grabbing a club that hung on the wall. She tried not to think about what it may have been used for beforehand. The other warriors followed suit.

"Follow me," Azula said, leading the group out of the room. Now that everyone was gathered together, all bets were off. While it thrilled Azula to manipulate and outsmart her opponents, she enjoyed fighting just as much. There would be no reason to hold back her bending now.

As the group moved down the hallways, they kept up the appearance of acting like guards who looked to be on alert for any signs of trouble. As they neared the exit of the cellblock leading back out to the prison yard, they noticed a swarm of activity.

"Hurry up!" a guard called out to them. "Five prisoners have escaped from their cells, and the warden needs as many reinforcements as possible on the walls." With that, the man ran out into the prison yard with a group of guards.

Azula smirked. "That helps," she said quietly. "They're looking for prisoners, not guards. At least not yet."

Moving quickly out into the prison yard, they began to run toward the northern wall. The sun had finally set, and the only light source came from the torches within the yard itself and along the wall.

"Where do you think you're going?" a voice called out from behind them, causing them to stop dead in their tracks.

Azula recognized the man's voice. It belonged to the warden. They all turned to face him—a tall, wiry man with long black hair and dark brown eyes. Azula nudged Sokka with her elbow, trying to let him know that he wanted to him to speak. While her face was hidden, he would undoubtedly recognize the sound of her voice. After all, they weren't exactly strangers.

"Uh, we're going to the northern wall," Sokka replied.

"More guards are needed at the eastern wall. That's the side of the prison that the prisoners escaped from.

"Actually, sir, we thought it would be best to help reinforce the northern wall so that the prisoners don't try escaping into the mountain," Katara replied.

The man looked thoughtful for a moment, before nodding. "Good idea." The group took that as their cue to leave.

"Archers! Take your places. Be ready to fire at the first sign of escape!" they heard the warden yell out from the center of prison yard.

"Archers. Good to know," Sokka muttered under his breath.

Moments later they were running up the steps of the northern wall's tower. As they reached the top of the steps, they saw that there were already over two dozen guards lined up along the wall and a dozen more in the lookout tower itself. Most of the men and women on the wall carried bows, but many of them held spears and clubs. Several carried nothing at all, indicating their firebending ability.

After the long walk through the prison, the Kyoshi Warriors were beginning to tire—having been confined to such a small space for weeks on end, they weren't in the greatest of shape. Sokka, too, was starting to wear down a bit—his ordeal with the guards earlier taking a toll on him.

"Security is only going to get tighter the longer the prisoners are missing," Azula said quietly, noticing that many in their group were tiring. "We need to make our move now, otherwise it will be harder to get out."

"But there are archers all along the wall," Katara noted, her brow furrowing.

"It's now or never," she replied. "We can do this. Trust me."

Katara looked into Azula's golden eyes. Amazingly enough, she did trust her.

"Okay," she said with a nod, her expression hardening to one of determination.

"Now, Ty Lee," Azula ordered, looking over at her friend. The acrobat sprung into action, cartwheeling to the far end of the tower lookout, taking out two of the guards with a series of deft punches.

The rest of the guards looked confused for a moment, trying to figure out why their own people had attacked them. Their momentary confusion ended when they saw Sokka and the Kyoshi Warriors advancing on them with their clubs. Immediately, they were on the defensive.

Flashes of electricity formed at Azula's fingertips, and she ran at another guard, jamming her fist into her stomach and stunning her. Katara pulled the water from her pouch, forming a whip and taking out three of the men nearest her.

It didn't take long. Nine against twelve was hardly a match against benders of Azula and Katara's caliber and fighters like Ty Lee—even at half strength Sokka and the Kyoshi Warriors could more than hold their own. However, the skirmish in the tower had drawn the attention of other guards on the wall. Several of them were now running toward the tower where the fight had taken place, as the archers readied their bows.

"Go, now!" Azula ordered them, and the group began to climb down from the tower to the mountainside, before scrambling up to a rock formation where they could take cover.

"Azula, come on!" Katara shouted when she realized the firebender was just standing there looking at the guards on the wall.

She didn't reply, too focused on the task at hand. As arrows came sailing through the air toward them, the prodigy brought up an enormous blue wall of flame, completely incinerating the wooden projectiles.

"Keep going!" she finally called back to the girl.

Katara was about to object when she felt Ty Lee's hand on her arm. "Azula knows what she's doing," the acrobat explained. She had seen the princess practice this technique before.

With a heavy sigh, Katara begrudgingly began to follow Sokka and the others up to where Appa was waiting.

As Azula continued to hold up the wall, she took deep breaths—her inner fire growing stronger and stronger. Then gathering the flames of the wall inward into a giant ball, she exhaled, shooting out a mammoth charged blast at the prison wall. The sheer impact exploded half the structure of the northern wall, as the aftershocks threw off the archer's balance.

With a satisfied smile, Azula ran up the mountainside to catch up with everyone. Using the darkness to her advantage, she was able to traverse upwards without being spotted by the slowly recovering guard.

By the time she arrived, everyone was in Appa's saddle—everyone except Katara.

"Oh, thank the spirits," Katara exclaimed as she ran over to Azula, pulling her into a hug before crushing her lips against the other girl's.

The Kyoshi Warriors stared at the pair in shock as they saw the waterbender's lips locked on Azula's. Katara was well aware that they were staring, but she didn't care. She was just happy that they had all made it out of there alive, and nothing was more life-affirming right now than be able to touch and kiss Azula.

As much as she wanted to stay this way with Katara, Azula knew they had to get moving. The firebender broke the kiss. "Katara, we need to go. Those guards will find us soon."

Katara sighed, but nodded her head in agreement. The two then climbed up on Appa, settling into the saddle as Ty Lee took the reigns so Sokka could rest. Within moments, the sky bison lifted off the ground, taking his newest passengers to freedom.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

The group began to journey back to the Taku Ruins to get some much needed rest, and Katara set to work on healing the worst of Sokka's injuries as they flew. She focused first on his back, having noticed a muscle that had suffered a particularly deep bruise.

As they continued to fly to safety, a tense silence began to overtake the rest of the group. The Kyoshi Warriors' resentment toward Azula and Ty Lee was hardly tempered by their recent assistance in their escape. If not for them, they never would have been put in that horrible prison in the first place, and their leader would still be with them.

Since Ty Lee was steering Appa, it was easy for her to ignore the glares that she knew were being directed at her. One thing the acrobat refused to do was dwell on the past. She just wished the warriors would wise up and do the same. Azula, however, felt her patience wearing thin.

"Don't you have anything better to do than give me nasty looks?" Azula snapped at them.

"You deserve a lot worse than that," Isaye retorted. "Do you have any idea what they did to us in your prison?"

Sokka and Katara—still in the midst of their healing session—looked up at the two arguing girls, concern written all over their faces. It was the unspoken question that had been plaguing Sokka, and one that had definitely crossed Katara or Ty Lee's more than a few times. Azula had a good idea—her own imprisonment at the hands of Long Feng and knowledge of Jian prison itself aiding in that—but thought it best not to mention it previously. She couldn't do anything about it now anyway.

"I helped get you out, didn't I?" was all the firebender said.

"You did," Isaye agreed, but the venom was still in her voice. "That doesn't make up for the fact that you put us there."

Azula's eyes flashed dangerously at the girl. Katara saw that this was about to quickly escalate and decided to try and diffuse the situation. "It's a start, Isaye," she said firmly.

The Kyoshi Warrior's angry eyes fell on Katara then. There were several moments of tense silence. Kira placed her hand on Isaye's back. "Katara's right, you know."

"How can you say that? I heard what they did to you," Isaye said bitterly, causing Kira to flinch at the memory of the brutality of the guards.

"Because it doesn't change what happened," she replied. "And at least we're out of that hell hole now."

The other warriors nodded in agreement. Suki's second-in-command gritted her teeth, shaking her head. They had a point, but it still didn't feel right to her.

"I still don't like you," she finally said to Azula before turning away to look over the edge of the saddle.

"Fine by me," the firebender replied, not really caring what the girl thought of her.

By this point, Sokka was convinced that it was impossible for girls to get along with each other—having seen Katara and Toph argue frequently on their travels, and now this. Katara sighed and shook her head, wishing that the Kyoshi Warriors would at least be civil, but she supposed she couldn't blame them. Her eyes flicked over to Azula, who had now moved to sit beside Ty Lee on Appa's head. She wondered what the other girl was thinking. _"Once I'm finished healing Sokka and any of the warriors who need it, I'll talk to her,"_ she thought before bringing her attention back to her brother's body.

* * *

By the time Katara had finished healing the last of the warriors, Appa was making his descent to the Taku Ruins. Azula had taken over for Ty Lee, and the acrobat was now napping quietly at the front end of the saddle. It was nearing midnight, and everyone except for her, Isaye, and Azula were asleep.

It was obvious that Azula wasn't in a talking mood, so Katara decided to let her be for now. The former princess had been quiet during the time she sat alone with the acrobat. Now that the mission was over, something felt even more off inside her. Ty Lee had noticed a shifting of the girl's aura, so opted for silence over chattering to let Azula clear her mind.

The quiet hadn't helped. If anything Azula felt even more confused. Something felt wrong—all wrong inside her. When the Taku Ruins had come into view, she felt a small relief. _"Maybe a good night's sleep will help,"_ she thought.

After Appa made landing, Katara gently woke Ty Lee and her brother, while Isaye awakened her warriors. Azula continued to sit on Appa's head, keeping her back to the group. Katara frowned slightly and walked over to wear she sat.

"Hey," she said, placing her hand on the firebender's back, noticing that it felt a little warmer than usual.

Azula shifted and turned to look at Katara. The waterbender thought she looked almost drained.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"I think I'm just tired," she replied, not sure what was going on. She definitely didn't feel right.

Katara nodded. "I think we could all use some sleep." She put her hand out for Azula to take, but the firebender shook her head.

"Give me a minute," she said.

The waterbender looked at her with concern, but did as she was requested and turned back to gather some of their supplies. Ty Lee and the Kyoshi Warriors had grabbed most of the gear and were already beginning to set up camp.

Sokka grabbed his pack, but before climbing down off of Appa, he walked over to the former princess. She glanced up at him, and the boy seemed to hesitate for a moment.

"Listen, Azula. Even though we didn't get there in time for Suki, I just wanted to say…" He paused, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, thanks for saving me in there."

Azula looked slightly surprised for a moment before replying, "You're welcome."

"And even though the Kyoshi Warriors might not appreciate what you did, I want you to know that I do."

"Even though I'm the one who put them there in the first place?" Azula asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes. You aren't the same person you used to be," he said firmly before turning to climb down from the sky bison.

"_That's true. But who am I now?"_ she thought as she slowly pushed herself up to join the others on the ground. As she did so, an unexpected wave of dizziness came over her. She caught herself from stumbling and falling off the bison, grabbing a hold of Appa's saddle. A metallic taste filled her mouth as another bout of dizziness washed over her.

Katara caught sight of Azula kneeling on Appa's head, leaning her weight against the saddle, and immediately climbed up Appa. The waterbender wrapped her arms around the girl to steady her.

"Katara," Azula's voice sounded far away to her own ears. She struggled to speak—to hold herself up. Closing her eyes, she collapsed in Katara's arms.

* * *

_Azula stood on a platform, a spotlight shining down on her, but otherwise surrounded by darkness. She couldn't tell if she was outdoors or inside. Maybe it wasn't either. In front of her she could make out a pair of piercing golden eyes—almost glowing through the darkness. They were moving closer to her. Soon the possessor of those eyes came into view. They belonged to a black dragon._

_The large serpentine creature began to wrap itself around her body, its head coming close to her right ear while its claws rested on either shoulder. Its gentleness belied its intent._

"_Traitor," the black dragon hissed in the voice of Ozai. His body suddenly squeezed tightly around hers and the claws dug into her shoulders. She gasped in pain, but even that became a chore as she found it harder and harder to breath._

_She was trapped._

_Unable to speak or move or even breathe, her mind frantically searched for some kind of refuge._

* * *

"What happened?" Ty Lee asked worriedly.

"I don't know," Katara replied, her eyes never leaving Azula as she gently laid her body down on the blankets the acrobat had laid out. She leaned down and brushed her lips against the firebender's forehead. "She has a really high fever," she said as she pulled away. She bit down on her lower lip. "Why did this come on so suddenly?" Katara shook her head, pulling the cork off her water skin and drawing the cool liquid into her hands.

* * *

_An ocean surrounded the platform, and another dragon appeared from its murky depths. It was a red dragon with soft golden eyes. There was a warmth in them that comforted Azula, even as the black dragon continued to suck the life from her._

"_Breathe, Azula," the red dragon said. Azula thought it sounded vaguely like her mother—at least what she could remember of her._

"_I can't," she thought as she opened her mouth, struggling for air. "He's too strong."_

_The black dragon chuckled darkly. "She's weak now. Just like you," he taunted the other dragon, digging his claws deeper into Azula._

* * *

"My waterbending isn't helping," Katara said nervously, pulling the water back into her water skin after having worked on Azula for nearly a half hour.

"Katara, didn't Aang leave to get us medicine when we stayed here before? You know, after we got that cold sickness?" Sokka asked.

"Yeah. And he ended up bringing us frozen frogs to suck on."

Sokka blanched at the memory. "Ugh, don't remind me."

"You're the one who brought it up," Katara pointed out.

"Whatever. Remember he told us about the herbalist?"

Katara's eyes lit up hopefully. "Maybe she has something that would help Azula."

"Exactly. I'll take Appa out and look for her. Is there anything I should tell her?"

While the siblings talked, Ty Lee looked at Azula, observing the girl's aura. She had never seen so much conflict in someone's aura before—churning a violent black and red. Her spirit was clearly disturbed. In Ty Lee's studies of the human body and its chi paths, she had learned quite a bit about weaknesses of the body and the spirit. She remembered hearing about sicknesses of the spirit that would manifest physically.

"I don't know if that's going to work," the acrobat said quietly once Sokka had left. "I'm not so sure this is a physical illness, since your waterbending didn't help at all."

"I know," Katara admitted, looking up at Ty Lee. "I could feel it with my own hands—my own chi. But I have to try."

"Do you need me to do anything, Katara?" Ty Lee asked.

"Can you get some more water and some more blankets?" she asked, grateful for the help.

"Sure thing," the acrobat replied before getting up from her seat beside Azula. She glanced over at the Kyoshi Warriors who were all fast asleep, much to her relief. She was getting tired of the dirty looks.

Katara brought her eyes back down to the firebender and brushed the strands of hair made wet from sweat away from her face.

"Forgive me, Azula, but you can't stay in this," she said to the unconscious girl as she began to unbutton the girl's shirt, slowly stripping her of her heavy clothes until she was in nothing but her underwrappings.

* * *

"_Just give in to me, Azula," the black dragon whispered into her ear. "I can make you strong again."_

"_Don't listen to him, Azula. He has deceived you before," the red dragon insisted, drawing herself up from the water so that she was face to face with the girl. "He has nothing to offer you but lies and empty promises. True strength comes from the heart."_

* * *

Katara placed a kiss on Azula's cheek before laying down next to her. She said a quick prayer to Yue to watch over her while she slept.


	19. Chapter 19

**Author's Note:** Many thanks to DarkAuthor26 and MonCappy for inspiring my muse, who unfortunately ran away for a while. Even at that, this chapter came about after dragging him home kicking and screaming, so sorry if it sucks. I hope he decides to stay with me. :P

* * *

**Chapter 19**

Sokka knocked on the small door of the herbalist's yurt. After waiting a few minutes with no response, he banged louder. Suddenly, the door flew open, and the boy abruptly dropped his hand to his side. An elderly woman with long white hair and green robes stood before him, eyeing him curiously. A white cat ran outside from under her, and rubbed his face up against Sokka's legs, purring contentedly.

"I'm sorry to bother you so late, but my friend is sick and needs some medicine."

"Miyuki likes you," the woman replied with a smile as if not hearing him.

"Huh? Who's…" he asked, confused before his eyes followed the herbalist's to the animal at his feet. "Oh, okay," he realized and then looked back up at the woman. "So can you help?"

"You look tired. Why don't you come in for some tea?"

Sokka blinked. Was this woman out of her mind? In some strange way, he reminded her of Joo Dee. "I really don't have time. Please, if you could just give me some medicine."

"Young people these days," she said to herself, turning around to walk back into her home. Miyuki dutifully followed his mistress. Sokka stood still, not sure if he should follow them. "Well, are you coming or not?"

He hurried into the circular hut where the herbalist was setting up a pot to boil hot water. "Listen, I appreciate your hospitality, but I'm kind of in a hurry."

"Settle down and have a seat. What's wrong with your friend?" she asked, her back to Sokka as she opened a cupboard containing boxes of herbs. The warrior did as he was told and took a seat at a nearby table. Miyuki jumped up onto his lap and began to nuzzle his face against the boy's chest.

"She suddenly came down with a high fever," he replied, absently scratching behind the cat's ears with his right hand.

"A high fever, you say?" The woman turned to look pointedly at Sokka. "Your friend, is she Water Tribe like you?"

"Uh, no," he said, rubbing the back of his head nervously with his free hand. "Does it matter where she's from?"

"Not really, I'm just making conversation," she said cheerfully with a smile. Sokka let out a sigh of relief, but raised an eyebrow at her sudden mood change.

"A friend of mine once came to you—several months ago, in fact—and you told him to have me suck on frozen wood frogs," he said, grimacing a bit at the memory. "Should I do the same?"

"Ah yes, I remember that airbending child. Such impatience, but he was a good boy." She hummed a little tune and pulled some leaves from a container, dropping them in the water that had now come to a boil.

"Soooo," Sokka tried again. "Should I get those frozen frogs?"

"Does she have a cold sickness?"

"My sister's a healer, and she doesn't think so," he replied. "Just a dangerously high fever."

"A waterbender then, huh?" The woman dropped a pinch of some herb into the water and stirred.

"Yes," Sokka said, slightly exasperated. "She used her waterbending, but it didn't seem to help at all."

"Ah, so it's a sickness of the spirit," the herbalist said, glancing sideways at the young warrior.

"Sickness of the… what? No, she just has a fever."

"Your sister's bending would have gotten rid of it if it were just a physical sickness."

"Ooookay…" Sokka trailed off, not sure what to say. Katara hadn't mentioned anything like this to him before he left camp on Appa. "Is there some kind of medicine you can give me?"

"There are ways to effect the spirit with herbs. The fever she will have to sweat out first. If the fever goes away, I have just the thing for her," she said as she added another leaf of something and stirred at the pot.

"Wait, what do you mean 'if' it goes away?"

"If a person with this sickness doesn't find resolve within their own spirit, the fever will continue. There's only so long a person can live under such a condition," she explained cheerfully, pouring the brew into a small white cup.

Sokka looked back at her somewhat stricken, but then he remembered that the children of Ozai never gave up. Of course Azula would come through this.

The herbalist then handed him the steaming cup of liquid.

"So, this is what I'm supposed to give my friend after her fever is gone?" Sokka asked, figuring he could transfer it to his canteen so as not to spill it on the flight back to the ruins.

"What? No, don't be ridiculous. A cup of tea isn't going to do anything for her. Drink up!"

Sokka stared at the woman for a moment, holding back the urge to smack himself in the forehead. This was turning out to be more complicated than necessary.

* * *

"_Give into me," the black dragon urged, his voice smooth like poisoned honey. "The red dragon is a fool. I am what makes you strong."_

"_Look inside you and see if that's true," the red dragon replied. "The choice is ultimately yours."_

_The former princess closed her eyes, trying to focus on her energy and shut out the dragons. It was difficult—the black dragon continued to promise power and control—but she managed to do it. The energies in her body were at war with each other. Then she realized what they were._

"The black dragon is a part of me. Both of them are,"_ Azula realized. _"This is my nature—dueling energies. But why is it like this?_"_

* * *

Katara was up before dawn, her concern for Azula drawing her from her sleep despite her exhaustion from the recent jailbreak of the Kyoshi Warriors. The waterbender was still curled up at the former princess's side, and she was immediately aware of the heat radiating from the other girl's body. Her brow furrowed slightly as she pushed herself up to get a better look at Azula, whose body was shaking slightly from the fever. Instintively, her hand brushed against the firebender's face. "You're still burning up," Katara thought, biting her lip.

She then noticed three extra waterskins next to her. "That must have been Ty Lee's doing," she realized, looked past Azula's form to see the acrobat sleeping several feet away. The expression on her face wasn't as peaceful as it was in her waking state, she observed. It was particularly striking to Katara due to the girl's normally cheerful demeanor.

The waterbender briefly let her eyes roam over their campsite. The Kyoshi Warriors were still fast asleep. That's when she noticed that Sokka and Appa had not yet returned from his trip to the herbalist. "He should have been back by now. Where is he?" she wondered.

* * *

_The dragons were gone now. Azula couldn't tell how long she had been alone, but she knew it had been some time. At the moment, she was feeling tired and in desperate need of water. Kneeling down on the platform, she crawled over to the edge, seeking to quench her thirst. As she lowered her hands into the cool liquid, she caught sight of her reflection. She saw herself wearing the face paint and robes of a Kyoshi Warrior._

_Azula blinked and when she opened her eyes again, she wore the robes of a Fire Nation noble. She closed her eyes and shook her head then. Cautiously, she opened her eyes once more only to see the blue arrow tattoos of an Air Nomad down her arms and on her forehead._

_Startled, the firebender jumped away from the water and stared down at her body. She was wearing nothing but her underwrappings, and there were no signs of the tattoos—or the scars from her recent torment._

"What was that about?"_ she thought to herself, as she ran her hands over her skin, as if to convince herself of what was real, but the visions had been hauntingly familiar._

* * *

Azula's eyes fluttered open, but it was quickly apparent to Katara that the girl wasn't fully conscious. Knowing that Azula needed to stay hydrated, she pulled the firebender up to sit. Scooting in behind her, Katara propped her body against her own as she held a waterskin to Azula's lips. The prodigy's hands grasped at the waterbender's and greedily gulped down the water as it was poured into her mouth. Her body then slumped against Katara's as she fell back into her fevered sleep. Katara continued to hold the girl.

The minutes passed. As the sun began to peak over the horizon, Katara could make out the form of Appa in the distance. Short moments later, the bison made landing in their camp, and an exhausted Sokka climbed down from the saddle and approached his sister.

"What took you so long?" she asked him.

"That herbalist lady is crazy," he replied. "She made me have tea with her before she would give me anything for Azula." He rummaged around in his pocket before procuring a small brown glass bottle with oil in it and then sat beside the two girls. "She said that Azula's sickness is a spiritual one and that she has to sweat the fever out first. Then she should take this," he explained holding up the bottle.

"Yeah, after you left, Ty Lee and I figured this was probably a spirit related illness. What is that stuff anyway?"

"It's an extract of cinnamon. It's supposed to balance her chi. The herbalist said that her moods might be a little 'off' otherwise." He yawned and handed it to her. "Anyway, I need sleep."

"Thanks, Sokka."

"Not a problem," he said, crawling over to his sleeping bag and promptly passing out.

Just as he did, Ty Lee began to stir from her slumber. Her gray eyes opened and met Katara's before looking down at the ailing girl in her arms.

"How is she?" Ty Lee asked quietly as she pushed herself up to sit.

"The same," Katara replied with a sigh. "She did drink some water though."

The acrobat nodded and gazed intently at Azula for a moment. "Her aura looks better than it did last night." A slight smile made its way to her face. "I think she'll make it through this."

* * *

_Azula sat cross-legged with her palms facing up in her lap. She had taken to focusing on her breath. It centered her—calmed the dueling dragon energies within her. As she continued to do this, the fire at her core blazed upward. Suddenly, Azula felt herself surrounded by white light. She looked down to see that the platform she was sitting on had transformed into a luminous white lotus, and in her hands rested a sunstone._

_These things she then realized were the symbols of her dueling nature finding union. And it was what she needed to spend the rest of her life doing. She breathed a sigh of relief, and her spirit felt freer than it had her entire life. The world dissolved into her…_


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

It was late morning when Azula's fever broke. The summer sun was reaching its peak, and its solar energy resonated with the girl's firebending chi, which soothed her mind, body, and spirit. She was suddenly aware of a warm body pressed against her back and the comforting arms that held her. She breathed deeply as contentment flooded through her.

She brushed her fingertips along the backs of Katara's hands. She felt the waterbender, who was dozing beneath her, unconsciously react to the contact and tighten her hold on Azula ever so slightly. The firebender's eyes fluttered opened, and, out of the corner of her eye, she caught Ty Lee sitting beside her, smiling softly. The acrobat moved her hand across Azula's brow before cupping her cheek.

"Glad to see you're awake, Azula," Ty Lee said quietly, so as not to wake Katara. "And I'm even more glad that your fever is gone. You scared us a little bit last night."

"I'm fine," Azula replied, a genuine smile gracing her lips. She couldn't remember ever feeling this happy before.

"You seem… different," the acrobat commented, finally dropping her hand from Azula's face. "I've never seen your aura look so pink!"

Those words were loud enough to jar Katara from her nap. Her eyes flew open and immediately caught Ty Lee's. The acrobat smiled at her, instantly recognizing the unanswered question in Katara's eyes. She nodded to confirm it for the waterbender.

Katara felt a rush of relief. "Azula, you're awake!" Instinctively, she brought her hands to the firebender's face to confirm what she had hoped. "And your fever's gone." She let out a sigh of relief and rested her forehead against Azula's shoulder. Azula interlaced her fingers with the other girl's, resting their hands against her belly, as an indolent smile played at her lips.

"I'll leave you two alone," Ty Lee said lightly before gracefully rising to her feet and finding some other way to spend her time.

"How do you feel?" Katara murmured once they were alone.

Azula didn't answer her with words. Instead, she shifted her body around until she was facing Katara. She took the waterbender's face in her hands and smiled. Her eyes shined with happiness, and Katara couldn't help but smile back as she brought her fingers up to brush back Azula's hair. The firebender then leaned in for a kiss, causing Katara's eyes to close as she let out a soft moan of pleasure. Azula smiled against the girl's lips before deepening the kiss and expressing just how good she felt through means other than words.

* * *

From a distance, Ty Lee watched her friends passionate embrace and smiled sadly. She shook her head and turned to look around their campsite. Sokka was still fast asleep and several of the other warriors were resting quietly. Two of them held a quiet conversation, seemingly unaware of the acrobat's observation. Ty Lee hesitated whether or not to go talk to them, but then she thought better of it, averting her gaze. _"I'm not really in a sociable mood. Spirits, what's wrong with me anyway?"_

She began to walk toward the higher portion of the ruins to think. She'd been feeling a bit down for the last few days—she'd felt that her smiles and laughter took more effort—but she couldn't seem to pinpoint what exactly she was sad about. She'd determined it wasn't homesickness. She didn't miss home at all, actually—although she held no bad feelings toward her family. She was just too different from them to stay there and be happy. It seemed to get worse after watching how much Sokka was affected by Suki's imprisonment, and even more so when he smiled while talking about the good times with her.

For a brief second she wondered if she was jealous. _"But I don't like Sokka. I mean, I like him, he's cute, but I don't want to be with him."_ The feeling had come up again, especially strong, when she was with Azula and Katara this morning. _"I'm happy for Azula… and_ _Mai too. Their happiness has always been important to me. So what's the problem?"_

Ty Lee let out a frustrated sigh. An answer wasn't coming to her anytime soon, she realized. She paused in her steps to take in the sight of the section of ruins where she now stood, and couldn't help but think that it would be a great place to train with all its uneven terrain. _"Maybe a little workout will help me sort things out,"_ she thought, bringing her mind to focus on her body and her chi before sending both out in a blur of movement.

* * *

Azula and Katara were sitting together quietly beneath the shade provided by one of the overhangs of rock in the ruins. They had spent the last hour like that—the fever all but forgotten in Azula's mind. The smile had never left her face either, and everything Katara said was met with agreeableness. The Kyoshi Warriors had spent most of the day so far to themselves, but were at least civil in the times they spoke with Azula. They found her demeanor a little disconcerting, but chalked it up to her still being sick.

Across the campsite, Sokka was finally up and moving around. He dug through one of their bags to find some melons for Appa and brought them over to the sky bison. Appa happily ate the food the boy fed him, and after he was done eating, to show his appreciation, he licked Sokka from toe to head.

"Ugh," Sokka exclaimed, wiping at his clothes. "Why is it that you only lick me?"

Azula giggled at the sight, causing Katara to raise her eyebrow. It was one thing to have her be in a good mood, but something was off. Azula _did not_ giggle. _"Ah,"_ she realized what the problem was, and immediately went for the extract from the herbalist she had left alongside the waterskins. She grabbed the glass bottle and unstopped the cork.

"Here, drink this," Katara said, lifting it to Azula's lips.

The firebender sniffed at it experimentally. "It smells like cinnamon."

"Because it is. Drink up."

Azula took the bottle from her then and dropped her head back, letting the oily substance pour into her mouth. It left a pleasant burn as it moved down her throat and into her belly.

"It might take a few minutes before it does its work," Katara explained. "Your chi should feel more balanced. I can do some waterbending on you too later to help with that if you want."

Azula nodded, but her focus was now inward. What Katara had said made her very curious. While she knew her spirit had been freed from the bondage that had a merciless hold on her in recent years, part of her felt like she was going to fly away. Not that it was a bad thing, but maybe some grounding was in order. She wanted to see if she could feel the difference as the extract started to work.

"I think I'm going to meditate now," Azula said.

"Alright. I'll be here if you need me," Katara replied, brushing her fingers against Azula's upper arm in a show of affection.

The firebender looked over at the other girl as a sense of gratitude filled her. She didn't know what she would have done if Katara hadn't been by her side through all this. Azula opened her mouth to say something, but again, words seemed inadequate. The waterbender smiled in understanding. She knew by now that Azula's eyes said more than her words ever did when it came to these softer emotions.

* * *

It was late afternoon when Azula came out of her meditation. She admittedly felt much more balanced than she had when she'd initially woken from her fever. The visions she'd had were still very clear in her mind, and she had no doubt that she would still struggle with these energies with in her, but right now, she felt at ease and dared herself to hope for a better future.

She spotted Katara preparing food for supper with the help of one of the Kyoshi Warriors. Azula realized that they probably were planning their next move. Getting up from her seat, she walked over to where everyone else was gathered. As she got closer, she realized that Ty Lee was nowhere to be found.

"Where's Ty Lee?" Azula asked no one in particular.

"Training, I think," the warrior Erina replied.

"She's been at it for a couple hours," Sokka explained. "She'll probably be back soon."

Azula nodded and took a seat in between Sokka and Katara, allowing her gaze to linger on the waterbender for a moment or two. Katara felt Azula's eyes on her and turned to smile at the girl. "You feeling better?"

"Much better," she replied with a soft smile. Katara then turned her attention back to their food, and Azula turned her attention to the girl's brother. "So what's the plan?"

"Well, I'm in favor of rescuing Suki," Sokka replied, twisting a blade grass between his fingers, "but I know that we don't have much time before the invasion. We're expected back at the Eastern Air Temple in a week and a half." He sighed, tossing the grass to the ground, and looked at Azula. "You said Suki was transferred to the Boiling Rock. What can you tell us about it?"

"From here it will take about a day to get there. So time actually isn't the issue. It's simply going to be impossible to do. No one has ever escaped the Boiling Rock. It's located in a boiling lake inside a volcano. It would have been hard enough before we broke the Kyoshi Warriors out. Now the Fire Nation prisons will be on high alert. They'll probably put Suki in solitary confinement, since she's your leader."

Sokka ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated. He couldn't accept that it was an impossible task. "Do you know when she was transferred?"

"According to the records, eight days ago."

"Then she's probably still on a ship," he said hopefully. "We could intercept it."

"No, not a ship. Well, at least not one that floats in water. They transported her via airship. She's already there."

Sokka and Katara both let out a groan as they realized that the Fire Nation had gotten a hold of the Mechanist's invention after all.

"We want our leader back," Isaye's voice broke in. "But we also know that Suki wouldn't want us to risk our freedom for hers. She'd want us to do what we can to end this war."

* * *

Ty Lee planted her hands and propelled her body up and out over the edge of one of the ruin's rocks, twisting and turning herself as she fell through the air. Landing easily on both feet, she breathed deeply and wiped the sweat that had formed on her brow from her workout beneath the summer sun. She looked out over the ruins and smiled as she took in the sight of her friends and the Kyoshi Warriors talking in the distance. She was too far to make our their faces or what they were saying, but it seemed that some of the animosity the warriors held for Azula was starting to fade based on their body language. _"And Azula seems at peace finally. She deserves it after all this."_

Still, she knew that they, along with Sokka, were very worried about Suki, and that was on top of what was troubling her. That quickly tempered some of Ty Lee's happiness.

Sighing, the girl moved to go back to their campsite, but as she took her first step, she heard movement behind her. Spinning around, her gray eyes widened as she took in the sight of an enormous bearded man with a tattoo at his third eye standing at the top of the rock she had just jumped from. His eyes were fixated on her as he inhaled, and Ty Lee knew she was in trouble.

Daha exhaled, his firebending chi moving up from his core to his third eye, and released a powerful blast toward the acrobat. Reacting on instinct, Ty Lee leapt off the rock as the heat of his fire came toward her. It barely missed her, instead shattering the rock upon impact.

Hunks of rock and smoke shot out in the air. Ty Lee cried out in pain as large stone smacked against her side. The blow caused her to lose her momentum away from the blast, and she began to fall straight down. Bracing herself best she could, Ty Lee tried tucked her body in on itself in an effort to protect herself from the earth that threatened to smash against her body as she continued to fall toward the ground. Suddenly, sickening pain shot through her skull, and the acrobat knew no more.

* * *

The explosion a few hundred feet away had immediately grabbed the group's attention. Azula's head shot up to see a ball of pink hit the ground limply, and she heard a strangled gasp from Katara.

"No!" she shouted, leaping to her feet and running as fast as she could toward her friend. Sokka, Katara, and the Kyoshi Warriors were right behind her._ "Agni, let her be alive,"_ she pleaded to the sun spirit as she tried to push away feelings of dread and worry.

As they came closer to Ty Lee, they were met with a fiery blast from above. Azula thrust both arms up, lifting a wall of fire to shield them from the attack. The ground shook, but Azula's defense was strong enough to block it all. As the smoke dissipated, they saw their attacker, and Azula immediately recognized him. Her eyes narrowed as she realized who must have sent him.

"You guys help Ty Lee. I'll take care of Daha," she ordered. Before Katara could argue, Azula was running head first toward the assassin. The waterbender knew Azula was right—Ty Lee needed help and fast—but she still didn't like that the girl was facing this madman alone.

Though his expression didn't change, Daha inwardly smiled. It was always easier when his prey came to him.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

Blue flames shot out from Azula's hands and feet, allowing the firebender to propel herself forward and up the side of the ruins and toward the assassin. Her pleasant mood from earlier had all but evaporated, and now in its place was fierce determination.

Azula had two objectives. The most important of them was to take Daha down, which she knew wouldn't be easy. There was a reason he was still alive—he was the best in his line of work, and she had seen him first hand in the Agni Kai arenas. She knew what he was capable of. So she knew the necessity of keeping his attention focused on her and away from her friends.

As she got closer to Daha, the man unleashed another blast of fire from his third eye at her, causing Azula to give her fire jets an extra boost. As she soared higher up into the air, his flame nearly grazed the soles of her feet and extinguished her own fire. Azula grabbed onto a hold in the rock to keep from falling. She rekindled the jets in her feet in order to flip herself up to the top of the ruins. As she shot herself in the air, rock exploded beneath her from yet another one of Daha's blasts—the heat it generated so intense the air around her rippled. _"This is way to close for comfort,"_ she thought as she landed on both feet upon the ledge where Daha stood—no more than 50 feet from each other.

Azula didn't dare hesitate and was immediately on the offensive. Gathering her chi into her palms, she drew both arms back before extended them forward and unleashing a massive fire disc at the assassin. He crossed both arms in front of his chest and released a blast of his own. It met Azula's fire disc halfway between the two opponents, causing a huge eruption of flame, heat, and rock to flare out toward them both.

Azula's eyes widened. With only a split second to react, she attempted to shield herself from the oncoming collateral by wrapping a fire sphere around her body, but there was only so much it could do. The force of the impact caused Azula to become airborne as her body was propelled backwards until it met the hard rock of the ruins—knocking the wind out of her. She fell to her hands and knees, gasping for breath. She could make out Katara yelling her name from below, but when she looked up all she could see was smoke surrounding her.

An image of Daha turning his combustible attack on Katara flashed through her mind, and it filled her with dread. _"I have to keep him focused on me,"_ she reminded herself, gritting her teeth and forcing herself to stand as her breath slowly came back to her. Her eyes narrowed, trying to make out her much larger opponent through the smoke.

Across the ledge, Daha lay face up on the ground, stunned from the impact of the blast. He had managed to protect his third eye from the debris, but hadn't been prepared for just how strong the kickback would be. He had assumed his attack would penetrate Azula's fire disc—foolishly dismissing the stories of just how powerful Ozai's daughter was. Grimacing, he pushed himself up. He wouldn't underestimate her again.

* * *

Katara stared anxiously at the scene above her, trying in vain to make sure Azula was okay, but the smoke made it difficult to see clearly. The last she had seen were two bodies flying in opposite directions and then nothing more. But as the smoke slowly dissipated, she was able to faintly make out of the form of Azula moving around.

"Katara," Sokka said, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Ty Lee needs your help. Azula will be fine."

The waterbender shook her head, knowing her brother was right. She tore her gaze from the ledge and back down to the unconscious girl at their feet. Dropping to her knees, Katara drew the water from her pouch and let her hands roam over Ty Lee's body, feeling where the girl's chi was blocked in order to find her injuries.

Sokka and the Kyoshi Warriors stood in between Ty Lee and Katara and the battle on the ledge above them, weapons at the ready—ready to offer whatever protection they could while Katara worked.

"She's in bad shape," Katara said worriedly as her hands brushed over Ty Lee's ribcage. "Several of her ribs are broken." Her hands continued to move across her body. "Her right arm and leg too." She bit her lip when she came to the girl's head. There was a large bump forming on the top of her skull and tiny web-like cracks beneath it. Blood was pooling into the fracture. "This isn't good."

Knowing that the head injury was the most serious, Katara set to work on trying to stop the bleeding on top of Ty Lee's brain. After that, she could tend to the rest of her injuries.

The ground beneath them suddenly shook from the intensity of Azula and Daha's fight. Katara spared a glance up at the battle to see Azula launching a rapid volley of firebombs from her fists at the assassin, who was doing everything he could to simply block them—Azula's relentless assault not allowing him to get off an attack. Confident that Azula could hold her own for the time being, Katara turned to look at her brother, who was watching the healing out of the corner of her eye.

"Sokka, we need to get Ty Lee out of here. It's too dangerous to stay here, and I'm going to need more water," she said.

Sokka nodded and pulled out the bison whistle to signal Appa. Within minutes, he arrived, landing on the far side of the group, away from the battle.

"I think I've stopped the bleeding," Katara said, drawing her hands back from Ty Lee's head and returning the water to its pouch. "Sokka, can you carry her? Be careful of her broken bones."

"I will," he replied as he gently lifted the still unconscious girl into his arms and walked up Appa's tail. Katara and the Kyoshi Warriors followed quickly, remaining vigilant of a possible attack.

"What about your supplies?" Fusa asked Sokka lay Ty Lee down onto Appa's saddle blankets. Katara immediately went back to work.

Sokka pursed his lips in thought for a moment, watching Azula battle Daha. Even though she was in control of the fight, it didn't seem like she could get close enough to him to finish things off. With Ty Lee in the condition she was in, it was probably best to cut their losses and go. "We don't have time to pack up camp. We have to leave everything."

"But what about Ty Lee?" Isaye asked. "Won't she need some of those things?"

"We'll stop in a village," Katara reasoned, never pausing in her work. "The most important thing is to get Azula and then put as much distance between us and that man as possible. I can save Ty Lee, but not here. Not like this. We need to go someplace where she can stabilize."

* * *

Daha spotted his remaining targets climbing atop the flying bison. He wanted to fire off an attack at the group while they were somewhat off guard, but knew it would be suicide to turn his attention away from Azula at this time. The girl wasn't letting up, not for a second. Obviously, his reputation preceded him.

Azula was getting frustrated. Despite her having succeeded in stopping Daha from being able to get off another serious attack toward her or her friends, the assassin was still blocking everything she threw at him. Finding his weakness hadn't been terribly difficult. His style was very one-dimensional, but it was also very effective. However, due to him concentrating all his chi to release from his third eye, Azula reasoned it made that area vulnerable. _"If only I could manage to hit him there. That metal arm of his is heat and flame resistant."_

As she unleashed streams of fire at Daha, Azula was suddenly aware of a large presence above and behind her, but didn't dare to stop her attack on the assassin.

"Azula, we have to get Ty Lee out of here! Come on!" Sokka shouted from atop Appa's head.

It didn't feel right to retreat. This man wouldn't stop coming after them, and Azula knew she wouldn't be able to rest easy until he was defeated. But it was obvious to her that she couldn't finish this fight right now. Not now. Not without help—and there wasn't anyone who could really help her at the moment. She knew she needed Katara's help, but right now, Ty Lee needed Katara more.

Azula lifted her arms up, raising a massive blue wall of flame in front of her. Keeping her concentration on the wall in order to keep the group obscured from Daha, she shot jets of fire from her feet and soared up into the air above Appa, who was hovering above the ground—waiting to make a break for it. Azula exhaled and released the flames, dropping down into the saddle with a crouch.

"Yip-yip!" Sokka yelled with a flick of the reigns, and with that Appa was off—intent on flying as far and fast as he could from their attacker still at the ruins.

Instinctively, Azula's eyes fell on Ty Lee. Katara was at her side—her brow furrowed in concentration as she worked on her leg. Azula felt a pang as she looked at Ty Lee's broken body.

Katara's eyes met hers. "Will she be alright?" Azula asked.

Before Katara could answer, one of the Kyoshi Warrior's voices broke in. "Sokka, look out!" Kira yelled, pointing over the edge of the saddle and down toward the ground where Daha readied himself for one last shot.

"Hold on, everyone!" The group gripped onto the sides of the saddle—Katara and Azula grabbing hold of Ty Lee's body to keep her from falling—as Sokka pulled up on the reigns, causing Appa to make a sharp turn to the right. Searing heat and flame flew by—the blast just missing them.

As they flew out of the assassin's range, Appa leveled himself, allowing for a much smoother flight. Azula loosened her hold on Ty Lee, and all eyes—even those of her former enemies—fell on the acrobat.

"Will she be alright?" Azula tried again.

"If we can get her someplace safe, yes," Katara said as she once again set about her work. She was tired—it felt like she was healing people nonstop lately. She liked helping people, but she began to wonder if she would ever be able to relax. _"Now's not the time to think about this. You can rest later."_ Her water glove worked to mend Ty Lee's ribs.

It was quiet for awhile, but there was tension in the air. Katara next worked on Ty Lee's arm and then finally went back to her head. The bleeding had stopped, but she was certain that she would have a concussion. She was also becoming concerned that the acrobat hadn't regained consciousness yet.

"Azula, who was that guy?" Sokka asked, recalling that she had said the man's name right before she left to fight him.

"His name is Daha," Azula replied. "He's an assassin—the best in Fire Nation." Her expression hardened. Even though she felt freer than she had in her life, knowing who sent him bothered her. "My father must have sent him after me. Probably you too, Katara, after what happened in his war tent," she said with a frown as she settled beside the girl, who had just finished her healing with Ty Lee. Katara leaned into the firebender and closed her eyes, trying not to worry about having this man hunting them. "I doubt that's the last we'll see of him."

"He's not like any other firebender I've ever seen," Katara said.

"It looks like he blows stuff up with his mind. How do you even beat a guy like that?!" Sokka asked.

"He's rather unique," Azula agreed. "I've seen him fight in the Agni Kai arena. No one has ever beaten him. But he can be beaten. He directs all of his firebending chi out of his third eye—that's his weakness. The problem is getting close enough to do it. I've seen many of his opponents get blown right out of the ring." Again, she looked at her fallen friend. In a way, she was lucky not to have been blown to bits, but Azula knew she would be hurting when she woke.

The minutes passed and the sky grew darker. Very little was said as Appa continued to travel east. They would need to stop soon and were on the lookout for a village where they could rest for the night and get Ty Lee more help.

A groan suddenly broke the silence. The group looked to see Ty Lee trying to move as the girl cracked open her eyes. Immediately, Katara was at her side. Large grays met hers—the pain in them obvious.

"Take it easy," Katara said gently, placing her hands on Ty Lee's shoulders. "Just lie still. You'll be okay."

Ty Lee took in a pained breath, her teeth clenching. Everything hurt. "What happened?" she asked weakly.

"You don't remember?" Katara asked.

"Kind of. Hurts to think."

"Then don't. Just relax. You hit your head pretty hard," she explained brushing Ty Lee's bangs back from her forehead. "Some other bones are broken, but I can help with the pain with my waterbending. And we'll be getting you some herbs to help with that too."

"Is everyone else okay?" Ty Lee asked suddenly, her eyes darting around to make sure everyone was there, but everything seemed so fuzzy, it was hard to tell for sure.

"Everyone else fine," Azula said, her voice soft. "We're taking you someplace safe." Ty Lee's hand reached out for hers, and Azula took it. The acrobat relaxed somewhat then, focusing on the people around her and not the pain she was experiencing.

Azula shared a brief look with Katara, who smiled sadly at her before they both turned their attention back to Ty Lee. The firebender remembered when she was recovering from her wounds and Katara had been by her side—comforting her through simple touch. Perhaps she could do the same for her friend. Ty Lee had stood by her since day one, and Azula couldn't help but feel responsible for the state the girl was in now. _"This shouldn't have happened to her. She didn't deserve this."_

Azula's recent spiritual sickness had left her a changed person. Because her spirit was freer, emotions that she had locked away since her childhood were finally coming to the surface. Empathy was a rare thing these days, but even though Ty Lee was hurting, on some level, it felt good to not be so selfish. Maybe, she could be more like these two girls—the one who had been fiercely loyal since their days at the Academy and the one who had helped saved her body and spirit from total ruin. For this, above all else, Azula was grateful, and she knew then that she would do what she could to repay their kindness.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Darkness had descended in the small town of Norbu—one of the last free villages remaining in the northwestern Earth Kingdom. The town's healer, a slim but strong elderly man named Jalus, was getting ready to turn in for the night when a sharp knock fell on his door before it opened. He lifted his dark green eyes up to meet those of a young man in his early twenties—his assistant, Tashi—who looked to be a little out of breath.

"What's the rush, Tashi?" he asked lightly.

"A group of kids just arrived in town who need your help—one of the girls has several broken bones and a serious head injury. I've directed them over to the healer's hut and had her laid out on one of the beds there. She's in a great deal of pain."

"Another child caught in the crossfire of a battle?" Jalus asked with a note of sadness as he extinguished the candles in his home and headed out the door.

"Looks that way," Tashi replied, following the older man to the healer's hut. "I didn't get many details from them, but she took a nasty fall on some rocks after she was attacked."

As they got closer to the hut, Jalus was able to make out the hulking form of Appa resting alongside the building. His interest was piqued. "A flying bison. There's only one person in the world who has a creature like that—the Avatar. Is he with them?"

"No, but they claim to be his friends," Tashi said uncertainly.

"You don't believe them?"

"Several of them were wearing Fire Nation clothing."

"And you don't think the Avatar would have friends from the Fire Nation?" he asked with a wry smile.

"Well, no," Tashi replied, rubbing the back of his head. "The Fire Nation committed genocide against his people."

"The Air Nomad philosophy places an emphasis on freedom—that includes freedom of the spirit. Resentment and vengeance would inhibit that freedom, whereas forgiveness allows it. This is a worldview that the Order has adopted from the Air Nomads, you know."

"I know, and, in theory, I understand. It's just sometimes it's hard to put into practice, Jalus, especially when I see how much people have suffered with my own eyes. Maybe one day I'll be more like you."

"Remember that people are people. No matter what nation they are from, they deserve compassion," Jalus said as they arrived at the entrance to the healing hut.

When he walked into the small waiting room, he was immediately met by a boy dressed in Water Tribe garb and a group of five girls wearing the uniforms of Fire Nation prison guards. It was obvious to him that the girls weren't actually Fire Nation and had probably recently escaped due to their appearance. He thought the girls looked a bit too thin and possibly a little malnourished. He would see what he could do for them, but first there were more pressing matters to attend to.

"I'd stop for introductions, but I understand that one of your friends is in urgent need of my attention," Jalus said to the group. "Tashi, make sure they are comfortable and get them something to eat."

It was a short walk down the hallway to the room where his new patient lay. Tashi had wisely set the girl up in one of the front rooms. Jalus entered to find her laid out on one of the two beds, surrounded by two of her companions—one of whom was kneeling alongside the bed waterbending on the girl to help relieve the pain she was in. The other was standing at attention beside the waterbender, and her head turned in his direction—piercing amber eyes looking at him expectedly.

There was something familiar about her, but he was having trouble placing it. He would figure it out later, he was sure. For now, there was work to be done.

* * *

Even with Katara's waterbending, Ty Lee was in a considerable amount of pain after having her body moved from Appa's saddle to the healer's hut, despite Tashi's gentleness. She grit her teeth and wished for unconsciousness, but Katara had warned against her falling asleep due to her concussion. Not that she really thought she could sleep in her current condition.

She tried to push back the fears that were clawing at the back of her mind—being left crippled and unable to fight and do acrobatics—and focus on the present, knowing that too much negative energy would impede the healing process. So caught up in the unpleasant thoughts and feeling in her body, Ty Lee didn't notice when someone joined Katara and Azula in the room, and just had a vague impression of people talking.

It wasn't until Katara pulled her hands away from her broken ribs that Ty Lee was aware that a man had taken Azula's place at Katara's side and was gazing down at her.

"Hello, Ty Lee," he said, a note of compassion in his voice. "I'm Jalus, the town healer. I'm going to give you something to help you with your pain, and then I'm going to set your broken arm and leg," he explained before turning away to get some supplies.

Katara, who had moved over to the left side of the bed along with Azula, took a hold of Ty Lee's hand. The acrobat's eyes shifted to look at them. "Just try to relax. We'll take good care of you," the waterbender said with a soft smile. "Don't worry."

There was something about the way Katara looked at her that reassured her that everything would be okay. Her aura also contributed to that—the warm blue that glowed around her was soothing to look at. Ty Lee glanced up at Azula then, the concern evident on the firebender's face. The last time she recalled Azula looking at her that way was when they were eight years old, when she had fallen out of the tree in the palace courtyard while playing hide and explode. She had sprained her wrist, but otherwise was fine. Soon after that however, Azula slowly began to harden, drilling herself to perfection and expecting the same in others. She'd loved her friend regardless, but it was trying at times to live up to what Azula had expected of her and Mai.

Jalus's return pulled Ty Lee from her musings. He gave her a capsule containing herbs to dull the pain and laid out the materials for the splints and casts. The thought of being limited in her movements made Ty Lee's heart sink before remembering that she was lucky to even be alive.

It didn't take very long for her to start feeling the effects of the medication, her pain receding a bit. Ty Lee blinked, feeling a bit groggy but forcing herself to stay awake.

With Katara's help, the healer wrapped her right forearm and lower right leg in a cast. Again, like she had on Appa's saddle, Ty Lee reached out for Azula's hand while they worked to set the bones properly. She half expected the former princess to pull away, since there wasn't really any reason for it other than comfort, but Azula didn't hesitate and even offered her a quiet smile.

"There, all set," Jalus said once he finished. "Let me just take a look at your head."

She felt his fingers gently probe the area around her head wound, careful to avoid the actual fracture. "Hmm. It doesn't seem like there's any additional bleeding. Looks like Katara did everything that could be done before you arrived here."

"Is it okay if I sleep?" Ty Lee asked, struggling now to stay awake.

"Yes, it's alright, child," Jalus said kindly.

"We'll be here if you need anything," Katara said, gently squeezing Ty Lee's shoulder. The acrobat, comforted by her friends' presence, finally gave into sleep.

* * *

Katara slunk down onto the bed opposite that of Ty Lee's, exhaustion taking over. Jalus had left a short while before, but not before telling them where he could be found if needed. Tashi had provided them all with a warm meal and told them where they would all be sleeping. Jalus had insisted that they stay at the healing hut. He had said that what they all, not just Ty Lee, needed was rest. Katara couldn't agree more. The last few days had been way too eventful.

Azula and Katara had stayed with Ty Lee to be close by in case the girl needed anything. Sokka and the Kyoshi Warriors were in other rooms and already fast asleep.

"Are you alright?" Azula asked as she lay beside Katara on the bed and wrapped an arm around the waterbender.

"I'm fine. I'm just tired," Katara replied, closing her eyes and absently trailing her fingers along Azula's arm.

"I would imagine. You've been doing a lot of fixing people up lately."

"Too much," Katara said sadly. "I mean, at least now there's something I can do to help—I know how to waterbend. Up until recently, I was powerless to fight to protect the people of my tribe or to help those who were injured. But still, I wish there was some way to prevent all this suffering. I almost can't imagine what a world without war would be like, but I've never stopped hoping for it."

Azula took a moment to think about Katara had just said. She had spent most of her life sheltered from the rest of the world. Until recently, everything she had known about the war had been mostly in ideas. She had believed the Fire Nation was right, but after seeing all she had in the last few months—how much people, including herself and especially now Ty Lee, suffered because of this war, not just physically, but emotionally—she was having a change of heart.

"This war," Azula began with a furrowed brow. "It's all because of my family and our ambition. And for what? I was always told that the war was the Fire Nation's way to share our greatness with the world, but that's not what's happened at all." And then it became clear to her—what her purpose was. "I have to set things right. This can't keep happening."

"So you'll come with us during the invasion?" Katara asked, turning on her side and looking intently at Azula.

Azula wanted to say yes, but then the thought of facing her father again came to her. What would she do if she saw him? She knew he would undoubtedly try to kill her, and he would do the same to Zuko and Iroh. But if the Avatar did defeat him, who would take power in the Fire Nation? It was the first time she had even entertained these thoughts—after all, it had been a foregone conclusion not too long ago that the Fire Nation was going to win the war—but now there was a very real possibility of Ozai being defeated.

She still loved her nation even though she was no longer part of it. "Yes," she said. "I'll come." After all, she had never run from anything in her life, and she certainly wasn't about to start now.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

"When do you think they'll be here, Jalus?" Tashi asked the older man as they sat down for their morning tea.

"The day the sun shines longer than any other," Jalus replied as his assistant poured his cup. He paused and leaned over the drink, inhaling the sweet scent of jasmine—a gift from the Grand Lotus.

"The solstice," Tashi realized. He then smiled. "That's today."

The healer nodded, his green eyes twinkling. "This will be our most important work yet."

"I'm ready."

* * *

Azula was up at dawn, her back aching from where she had been smashed against the ruins during her fight with Daha. Grimacing, she got out of bed, careful not to wake Katara. She blinked a few times, her eyes adjusting to the dim light as she looked over at Ty Lee's bed.

"Azula?" the girl whispered. Her voice sounded pained.

Taking a step closer, Azula stood over the bed and looked down at Ty Lee's face, which was wrought with discomfort. It was obvious that Ty Lee hadn't gotten much rest. "How long have you been up?"

"I'm not sure. A few hours maybe. Everything hurts too much to sleep."

"You should have woken us up," Azula reproached. "We would have given you something."

"I didn't want to bother you. You and Katara both need your rest after what happened yesterday."

"Not as much as you do," she argued, forming a flame in her palm to look for the supplies Jalus had left behind. She quickly found what she was looking for on a nearby shelf, and offered a few capsules of herbs to Ty Lee along with some water. "Do you need Katara to waterbend on you?"

"Maybe later," Ty Lee replied quietly, glancing over at the still sleeping waterbender. "I can tell from her aura that she's exhausted. And I think the medicine should work." Her gray eyes looked back up at Azula. "Can you sit with me for a bit?"

"Alright," Azula agreed, sitting on the edge of the bed and looking at her friend's broken body with concern. It wasn't so long ago that she was in a similar position, and Azula still wasn't one hundred percent. It was easy to feel sympathy for Ty Lee.

Again, as she did last night, Ty Lee reached for Azula's hand. The firebender took it without hesitation, causing the acrobat to smile a bit. She could feel the pain medicine begin to kick in—her discomfort fading, replaced by a slightly euphoric feeling. They sat together in a comfortable silence, Ty Lee's fingers playing lightly against the back of Azula's hand. The former princess swallowed—the feeling that Ty Lee was instilling in her was very similar to when Katara held her hand.

Before she could consider that fact, Ty Lee spoke. "I've missed this side of you," she admitted with a drowsy smile.

Ty Lee's meaning was not lost on Azula. The firebender closed her eyes for a moment, feeling a little ashamed. "I guess I was pretty rotten to you, huh?"

"Sometimes," Ty Lee replied with a half shrug.

"I'm sorry," Azula murmured.

"It's okay. You were still the most beautiful, smartest, perfect girl in the world."

Azula felt herself blushing at the compliment. She opened her mouth to say something, but her speech failed her.

Ty Lee laughed lightly at Azula's tied tongue, her pain all but forgotten for the time being. Azula scowled slightly in response, but she found that she wasn't actually mad at her. It was good to hear her laugh, she admitted to herself.

"Katara's really lucky to have you, you know?" the acrobat said, her grip on Azula's hand becoming a little tighter. "We all are. You saved us back in those ruins against that assassin."

Azula smiled slightly but shook her head. "It wouldn't have mattered if it wasn't for Katara. She saved your life."

"True," Ty Lee agreed, her eyes closing and her speech slurring a bit from the medicine. "I'm lucky that I have both of you."

Nothing more was said between them, and within minutes, the acrobat was fast asleep.

* * *

Sokka yawned and stretched his arms as he stepped out onto the front porch of the healer's hut. The sun was just peaking over the mountains to the east, but he didn't mind getting up so early. His eyes scanned the town—it was still quiet, most people still hadn't started their day. He then spotted Tashi off in the distance going through earthbending drills. It was then that he realized that the entire town was surrounded by mountains, which was something he hadn't really noticed when they first arrived during the night.

"Good morning, young man," Jalus' voice sounded in greeting. "Did you rest well?"

"I did," Sokka replied, turning to look at the man who walking toward the hut. His stomach grumbled with hunger, causing the healer to chuckle.

"I'll get you something to eat after I look in on your friend," he said. As he was about to walk into the hut, Azula appeared in the doorway. Again, Jalus was struck with a sense of familiarity. _"Who does she remind me of?"_

"I gave Ty Lee the rest of the medicine you left. She's asleep now, but I'm guessing she'll need more," Azula informed the man, her tone all business.

Jalus shook his head. "Yes, I was going to check on her now. I'll take care of it." With those words he disappeared inside the hut.

"How's Ty Lee?" Sokka asked.

"Hurting," Azula replied with a frown before looking away to take in Norbu's setup. "You can see why this town hasn't been conquered by the Fire Nation yet."

"Yeah, the terrain doesn't exactly work to their advantage."

"We should be safe here from Daha for a few days at least. It won't be easy for him to traverse through these mountains, even with a mongoose dragon."

"That's good to know. I'd feel a lot better if we had Toph and Aang with us though. I mean, you held your own pretty good against that guy, but given the terrain, having an earthbender to back us up would help."

"It certainly would," a voice from behind them said. Sokka and Azula turned around to see Tashi approaching. The young man wore a slight smile on his face. "I might be getting a little ahead of myself here, but I have a feeling we'll be working together very soon."

Azula raised a questioning eyebrow at the man and then glanced at Sokka, wondering if they knew each other. Based on Sokka's expression, he was just as confused as she was.

Before Tashi was able to explain himself, Jalus made his way back out to the porch followed by a sleepy looking Katara.

"Good morning, Sokka," Katara said, and he nodded in response.

She slipped past her brother and over to Azula. "Good morning, Azula," Katara said, hugging the firebender and leaning in to kiss her. Azula happily reciprocated, forgetting for a moment everyone around them.

Tashi froze as he realized just who he had been speaking to, and the pieces suddenly fell into place for Jalus. He knew exactly who it was Azula reminded him of and why.

"Azula," Tashi said in disbelief, causing all eyes to turn on him. "_The_ Princess Azula of the Fire Nation?" He eyed her warily, but he couldn't seem to grasp why the Avatar or his companions would be traveling with her—let alone seeing one of them kissing her! It was staggering to him.

"Former princess," she corrected him, a touch of bitterness in her voice. Katara squeezed her hand lightly, helping to curb some of the bitterness she still felt over the loss of her title.

Both Jalus and Tashi were surprised by that, although judging by what had happened to Zuko, it made sense to Jalus how something like this could have happened.

"Tashi, why don't you go prepare breakfast for our guests?" Jalus said before gesturing toward Sokka with a playful smile. "This one is hungry."

His assistant nodded obediently, still trying to process this new information as he turned to leave.

"I suggest you keep your identity a secret while you're here, Princess Azula," Jalus said a bit seriously. "Most people in this town would not take kindly to you."

"Seems to be a common occurrence these days," she replied wryly. This man didn't seem to mean her any harm, but she wasn't about to let her guard down.

The sudden sound of moving earth on the edge of town caught the group's attention. Jalus's eyes brightened at the sight of two men on ostrich horses flanked by two other men—one carrying a crossbow and another who had just closed up the mountain pass with his earthbending.

"Is that Iroh?" Sokka asked, recognizing one of the men on an ostrich horse.

"And… Jeong Jeong?" Katara asked, referring to the man who rode beside him.

"The Deserter," Azula said. Surprisingly, she no longer felt any animosity about this man. She had heard the stories of how he had deserted the Fire Navy, and had felt nothing but disgust for him growing up. But now, she could really see why he would have done such a thing. The Fire Nation wasn't what she had thought it was—this war wasn't what she had thought it was.

"Ah, so you know Jeong Jeong of the Fire Nation," Jalus commented to them, but watched Azula's reaction in particular. "Obviously, you already know General Iroh, seeing as he's your uncle."

Azula nodded stiffly. She could see her Uncle's expression clearly now. It was one of pleasant surprise.

"Welcome, brothers," Jalus said with a bow as the men arrived at the threshold of the porch. "We've been expecting you."

"Thank you, Jalus," Iroh replied kindly, as he and Jeong Jeong climbed down from their mounts. "It's good to see you all again."

"You can tether your animals over here," Jalus gestured to the side of the hut where Appa still slept. "Perhaps it would be best if we continued this meeting inside," he finished, nodding toward the village proper. There was more activity in Norbu at this point in the morning, and several of the villagers were looking at all the newcomers curiously.

By the time everyone had settled in the front room of the healer's hut, Tashi had returned with the morning meal. An excited grin overtook his face as he saw their guests had finally arrived. The Kyoshi Warriors had also been awoken by the arrival, and Jalus quickly invited them to join them.

As everyone sat down in a circle, grabbing cups of tea and pieces of the food that Tashi had laid out, Azula noticed that much of her companions'—as well as her own—confusion about just who these men were and what was going on was tempered by Tashi's outward eagerness to their arrival. It was obvious that something important was happening here.

"Now that we're all settled, we can get down to business," Iroh began with a kind smile. "I'm sure you're all curious as to just what exactly is going on, but first, some introductions are in order. Allow me to introduce Damek of Omashu," he said, gesturing to the earthbender at his right before moving to the two men at his left, "Jeong Jeong of the Fire Nation, and Shen of Wulong."

The introductions continued, and Azula began to piece together more or less what was going on. These men—despite being from different nations—were allies. But exactly who they were and for what purpose they strove for was still a mystery. It was something that Iroh would soon shed light on.

"We are all members of a group that transcends the boundaries of the four nations—the Order of the White Lotus," he explained. "Since the beginning, we have operated in secret, but the time has come for that secret to become open to the world. I have called on the Order to aid the Avatar in his mission to end this war once and for all. Now is our time. Our destinies are upon us."


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

After the group's initial meeting, everyone had split up to pursue various undertakings. Currently, Azula and Katara were sitting in the main room of the healing hut with Jalus, Sokka, and Iroh. The Kyoshi Warriors had gone with Tashi and Damek to the training yard behind Jalus's home, while Jeong Jeong and Shen had chosen to meditate.

While Sokka explained in detail the events that had led to their being in Norbu—the freeing of the Kyoshi Warriors, Azula's sickness, and the assassin sent after them—Katara worked on easing the pain in Azula's back. Despite still being a bit tired from all the bending she was doing lately, she enjoyed being able to freely caress Azula's skin. The firebender was still hesitant to let Katara do much more than kiss her, and Katara wanted to do more than that. Of course, now wasn't the time or place. She hoped she'd get a chance to try again later.

As Sokka continued his story, Iroh periodically looked over at his niece. She seemed different from the last time he saw her—almost like Zuko after his fever in Ba Sing Se, but nowhere near as extreme or off balance. He could tell there had been an energetic and spiritual shift in her.

"I wouldn't be surprised if Ozai had this man sent after me and Zuko as well," Iroh said as Sokka finished his story. "I know my brother well."

"Well, like Azula pointed out earlier, the mountains offer us some natural protection, but I think we can take him if the White Lotus has our backs."

Iroh nodded in affirmation.

"Thank you. So how long before Ty Lee is able to travel?" Sokka asked Jalus and Katara.

"At least three days," Jalus replied.

"Even then, she'll need to take it easy for the next couple of weeks," Katara added, now finished with Azula's healing and resting comfortably against the wall besides the firebender.

"We're supposed to be back at the Eastern Air Temple by the end of next week," Sokka said thoughtfully. "Since the invasion force is departing from General Fong's base in three weeks, maybe it would be better if our friends met us here. That way Ty Lee can still rest, and the Kyoshi Warriors can get stronger."

"That's a good idea, Sokka," Iroh chimed in.

"I can prepare a messenger hawk," Jalus added. "It should get to the Eastern Air Temple in four days."

"We should tell them to leave right away," Sokka said. "On the eel hounds, it will take them about a week to get here."

"That will give us plenty of time to plan our strategy," Azula noted.

"Exactly," Iroh agreed.

"What exactly do you and your White Lotus intend to do, Uncle?"

"We intend to work directly with your group. In light of the fact that the Fire Lord knows of the invasion plan, there are certain measures we need to take to insure that we are successful. It would be best if the Avatar were already in the Fire Nation in case the domestic troops are able to hold off the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribe forces. We can discuss it more once Aang arrives, since ultimately, the decision is his in how he wants to approach this."

The group nodded in their agreement.

"Suppose the Avatar were to go along with this. Just where would we be staying in the Fire Nation, Uncle?" Azula asked.

"With another member of the White Lotus. I'll explain more once Aang, Zuko, Toph, and Mai arrive." He stood gracefully, belying his large form. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to meditate. The sun is almost at its peak, and today is a special day. Perhaps you'd like to join me, Azula?"

It was then that Azula realized that she hadn't really talked to or spent any time alone with Iroh in her entire life. She didn't really know this man at all—her opinions based only on what her father had told her about him, and Ozai certainly didn't think too highly of his brother. _"My father's been wrong about a lot of things, though," _she reminded herself.

"Alright," she agreed before turning to face Katara. "I'll be back later," she said quietly, planting a light kiss on the waterbender's lips.

"Okay," Katara said with a soft smile. "I'll stay with Ty Lee. Someone should keep an eye on her."

Azula nodded and then stood before following her uncle outside to sit beneath the sun.

"You seem different, Azula," Iroh commented as they took a seat in the enclosed area behind the hut.

"I feel different," she admitted.

"Sokka mentioned you had a fever while at Taku ruins. Your brother had a similar experience in Ba Sing Se dealing with a spiritual sickness."

"Oh?" Azula's curiosity was piqued.

Iroh nodded. "It was brought on after he freed Appa from Lake Laogai."

"My illness came on after I helped free the Kyoshi Warriors."

"Did you have any visions?"

"Yes. I saw two dragons. I realized they're directly related to energies in my spirit. I also saw reflections of myself as an airbender, a Fire Nation noble, and a Kyoshi Warrior. That's a vision I still don't really understand."

"Interesting." Iroh stroked his beard thoughtfully before settling his hands on his knees. He would wait until Zuko arrived before explaining that one to her. After all, he still had yet to explain the meaning of Zuko's vision of seeing a reflection of himself as an airbender.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out." He finally said before glancing up at the sky. "It's an auspicious time of the year for firebenders. Let's meditate."

* * *

It was early afternoon when Ty Lee finally woke again due to the pain, although it wasn't nearly as bad as it was last night. She let out a groan, and immediately felt the presence of someone beside her, and saw the soft glow of blue that was becoming so familiar.

Katara sat beside Ty Lee and brushed the bangs back from her forehead. "How are you feeling, Ty Lee?"

The acrobat paused to take an inventory of how she felt. Most of her body still hurt, particularly her head, but nothing new was bothering her.

"It still hurts."

"Here, let me help you," Katara said, grabbing more medicine from the shelf. "The first few days will be the worst, but after that you probably won't need any medicine," she explained as she gave Ty Lee the needed dose. "Of course, there's also my waterbending, which should move things along quicker."

Katara then drew water out from the room's basin and brought it to her hands, where it began to glow with a healing light. Ty Lee let out a sigh of relief as the waterbender's hands moved across her body.

Ty Lee watched the other girl work through half-lidded eyes, again feeling the effects of the medicine. She found that the waterbending helped a lot, and since she also had extensive knowledge of chi paths and the energies of the body, Ty Lee was able to open her spirit up to Katara's healing. She knew it would help her body mend itself faster.

There was something very comforting about Katara's touch. It was as if Ty Lee could feel how much the girl was genuinely concerned for her wellbeing. During her time growing up in the Fire Nation, she had never met someone as compassionate as Katara. She didn't want to think about what would have happened had the waterbender not gotten to her in time at the ruins. Still, there was some lingering fear about just how much she would recover.

"Katara?"

"Yes, Ty Lee?" Katara replied, pausing in her work.

"Be honest. Do you know if I'll recover completely from this? Will I still be able to do acrobatics?"

"I don't see any reason why you won't be able to. The break in your arm wasn't clean, but I was able to get a lot of the damage straightened out before we got here. Your leg broke cleanly. You might have some aching when it rains after, but otherwise, I think you'll be fine," she said with a reassuring smile. "You should avoid hitting your head again for the next year though."

"So that means I won't be able to fight for a whole year?" Ty Lee realized, disappointment flooding her. She had already resigned herself to the fact that she wouldn't be able to come along for the invasion, but this was especially hard for her to take.

Katara bit her lip. "It's probably not a good idea, no. Hopefully, you won't need to fight. If the invasion is a success, then the war will end."

"I'm sorry," the acrobat said suddenly.

"Why are you apologizing?" Katara asked, highly confused.

"For getting hurt. I know I'm screwing up the schedule."

"You haven't screwed anything up," the waterbender replied firmly, finally resuming her work. "And you don't need to apologize—that man is the one who hurt you. You didn't do anything wrong. Just focus on getting better, okay.

"Okay," Ty Lee said quietly, realizing that she was right. She pushed the negative thoughts out of her mind and brought her focus back to her chi paths.

"You know a lot about the subtle body, don't you?" Katara asked rhetorically. "I can feel your chi is actively working with mine. It feels…" she trailed off, unable to find the right word.

"Subtle but intense?" the acrobat offered.

"Yeah, that's a good way to describe it."

They both fell quiet then, intently focused—well, as much as Ty Lee could be in her increasingly medicated state—on their chi working together. After awhile, it became more difficult for Ty Lee to focus as the drugs hit her fully. Katara could feel it in her hands before she saw it with her eyes, but she continued on anyway because it would still benefit the other girl—not to mention that Ty Lee seemed to be enjoying it.

"Thank you, Katara," Ty Lee murmured when the girl had finished.

"You're welcome. Do you need anything else?"

"Not right now."

"Okay, let me know if you get hungry. I'll stay with you until Azula gets back."

"Where is Azula anyway?"

"With Iroh. He just so happened to show up in town this morning along with some of his friends. They know Jalus, the man who's been helping us."

Ty Lee tried to imagine Azula and Iroh together. She knew the firebender had never cared much for the man. Then again, Azula had been changing a lot these days. It was nice to see despite the painful circumstances that had brought those changes about.

"I don't mean to pry, Ty Lee, and maybe this isn't the best time to ask you, but before you got hurt, I noticed that you seemed low in spirits. Is everything else okay?"

"It's okay, you aren't prying." Ty Lee felt at ease around Katara. "And you're right, I have been in lower spirits lately. I'm not really sure what's wrong. I guess I just feel kind of lonely after seeing my two best friends in relationships," Ty Lee said. "It seems kind of stupid now though," she finished, glancing down at her broken limbs.

"It's not stupid. And you'll meet someone. You're an amazing person, Ty Lee," Katara said, squeezing the acrobat's hand. "I mean it."

Ty Lee smiled. "Why are you so nice?"

Katara blushed and shrugged.

"I'm glad that we're friends now."

"So am I," Katara replied with a warm smile.

* * *

"Have you sent word to King Bumi?" Jalus asked Iroh as they sat in the privacy of the healer's home, enjoying their evening tea.

"He's still imprisoned. He could easily have freed himself by now, but I suspect he's waiting for a more opportune moment to strike. We'll have to go on without him. The others will be meeting us at General Fong's base." Iroh paused to sip his tea. "Were you able to contact Princess Ursa?"

Jalus nodded. "She's been living in Gaoling under a different name for the past three years. I've instructed her to meet at the general's base per your instructions."

"Excellent, Jalus. It's been many years since she's seen her children. Thank you for helping to keep her safe all this time."

"You know there is no need to thank me."

"Still, I offer it all the same. Prince Zuko will be delighted to be reunited with her, and as you know, he is like a son to me."

"I do," the healer affirmed with a nod. He paused, looking at Iroh thoughtfully. "What about Azula?"

"To be honest, I'm not sure how receptive she will be to seeing her mother again, but she needs to face her."

* * *

Night had fallen, and the room was filled with the soft glow of candlelight. Azula was currently on her bed, lying on her stomach, while Katara straddled her backside, working to ease the last remnants of discomfort from her collision with the ruins. Katara had finally coaxed the firebender out of her tunic. "It's easier to waterbend on you without your shirt getting in the way," she had reasoned, and Azula had finally relented—thrusting her vanity aside. She had to admit, it felt good to let Katara do this, and she slowly relaxed under her skilled hands.

Eventually, the waterbending gave way to subtle, more sensual caresses.

Katara glanced over at Ty Lee's prone form on the other bed. Thinking that the girl had fallen asleep, Katara leaned down and pressed her lips against Azula's back, causing Azula to moan softly.

But out of the corner of her eye, the acrobat had seen the intimate display. She felt a pang as she watched the waterbender trail kisses down the firebender's spine, before quickly looking away and closing her eyes.

"_Am I jealous?"_ She never considered herself a jealous person before, and she didn't particularly like the idea of having feelings like that. _"Okay, say that I am jealous. Am I jealous that I don't have what they have?"_ She examined that thought for a while. _"No, that's not it. I think I might be jealous of Katara."_ She tried to imagine herself in Katara's position—pressing her own lips against Azula's skin. She felt herself grow warm at the thought. _"I'm attracted to Azula,"_ she realized, somewhat confused.

True, she had always admired Azula and thought her to be the most beautiful girl she had ever laid eyes on, but did she like her like that? She considered it and realized the truth was she did and had for a while now.

Ty Lee was struck with an odd thought then. She imagined herself in Azula's position, with Katara's warm lips on her body. Despite the circumstances, it had felt really nice when the girl had waterbended on her. Katara's aura and energy soothed her and made her feel safe. _"I think I'm attracted to her too."_

Did she like both of them? Given the situation, what would that even mean for her? When she had lived in the Fire Nation, she had always had more than one prospective suitor, but she was content to flirt and never commit. She had enjoyed the attention, as it was hard to come by at home. And she definitely had felt attracted to Sokka. _"Maybe I like both boys and girls,"_ she realized.

She opened her eyes again and looked over at the other bed. Azula was now lying on top of Katara, the two locked in a heated kiss. Ty Lee bit her lip to stifle a moan at the sight before rolling her eyes up to stare at the ceiling. _"What am I going to do?"_


	25. Chapter 25

**Author's Note: **Warning – strong limes ahead!

* * *

**Chapter 25**

There was a growing fire in Azula's belly as she pressed Katara's body into the mattress with her own. The waterbender kissed her hungrily, her hands roaming up and down the former princess's bare back. Katara was already half undressed, as she had taken to sleeping in only her underwrappings in the sweltering summer heat. The feel of the girl's skin against hers only served to fuel the firebender's passion, and she found herself wondering why she had stopped Katara from doing this before.

Azula began to trail a line of open mouth kisses along Katara's jaw as her hands worked to remove the girl's breast bindings. Katara's warm breath washed across Azula's neck before her mouth latched onto Azula's earlobe, biting down and suckling. Coherent thought fled the firebender as she gasped at the sensation.

Katara's hands slipped below Azula's waistband then, squeezing the firm flesh of the firebender's backside as she pressed her thigh in between her legs. Azula's eyes rolled back, and she couldn't restrain a low groan of pleasure at the sensation.

"I want you," Katara whispered hotly in her ear, causing the firebender to shiver as she drew her in closer and kissed her again. To be so desired by another person like this made Azula's heart melt and her body pulse.

Across the room, Ty Lee watched the pair through half-closed eyes, her breath coming out a bit heavier than usual. She hadn't really meant to watch, but in the quiet of the night, every rustling of fabric, touching of lips to skin, and gasps and sighs of pleasure seemed to boom inside her mind. She couldn't deny how aroused she was getting from the sounds they were making, and without thinking, she had turned her eyes on her friends' passionate display.

She saw Katara's hands cup Azula's breasts, causing Azula to gasp into the waterbender's mouth. Ty Lee again to tried to stifle a moan at the sight, but this time failed.

But Azula's sharp hearing didn't miss it, the sound temporarily pulling the firebender's attention from Katara. Remembering that they weren't alone, Azula glanced over at Ty Lee's bed, only to find her friend watching them. The acrobat's eyes were still half-closed, and she was softly biting her lower lip. Azula found the expression to be incredibly alluring, and a shot of heat went through her upon discovering Ty Lee's voyeurism.

Their eyes met then, and Ty Lee knew she had been caught. Embarrassed, she looked away, but not before noticing Azula's aura flare out in a deep rose color. Did Azula like that she was watching them? She glanced back, this time trying to show a little more discretion.

Azula's attention was back on Katara now, but there was an added charge now that she knew Ty Lee was watching. Before she could consider why she liked it, Katara licked along the firebender's collarbone. Azula moaned again and brought her mouth to kiss and nip along the soft skin of Katara's throat, causing the waterbender to hum happily in response. Katara's hands dipped lower then, coming to her hips.

"I want you," Katara said again as fingers slipped beneath Azula's waistband and brushed against the course hair between her legs.

Azula gasped. "Wait." It occurred to her that Katara might not be doing this if she knew that Ty Lee was still awake. This was all so new to both of them, and Azula was only beginning to learn what she and Katara both liked when it came to physical intimacy.

"What is it? Am I moving too fast?"

"A little bit," Azula admitted, "but it feels good."

Katara reached up with both hands, cupping Azula's face so she could look at her.

"We can go as slow as you want. There's no rush. It's just hard for me to keep my hands off you. I think you're incredibly beautiful, and I want to show you how much," she explained, leaning up to press her lips to the firebender's—the kiss equal parts tender and passionate—and Azula's heart filled with indescribable joy at Katara's admision.

Azula murmured into the kiss then before deepening it and interlacing her fingers with Katara's and pressing their hands into the mattress. She felt herself getting lost in a haze of passion all over again when she remembered why she had really stopped Katara in the first place.

She broke their kiss, her breathing heavy, and lowered her head to Katara's ear. "I think Ty Lee's awake," she whispered.

Katara glanced over at the acrobat's bed—in the faint candlelight she could tell that Ty Lee's eyes were closed, but her breathing was the dead giveaway that the girl was not, in fact, asleep. Katara blushed, feeling somewhat embarrassed and guilty at keeping Ty Lee from much needed rest, but she had honestly thought the girl had fallen asleep.

She bit her lip and looked up at Azula. "I think you're right," she said quietly, still blushing. "Maybe we should turn in for the night." She didn't really want to stop, but she realized it wasn't fair to Ty Lee. After all, she remembered when she was stuck listening to Sokka and Suki the night they crossed the Serpent's Pass. Of course, that was made doubly awkward by the fact that he was her brother.

"Okay," Azula agreed, easing herself off of Katara and coming to sit on the bed. Trying to get herself under control, she grabbed her sleeping tunic and threw it over her head while Katara readjusted her breast bindings.

With a flick of her wrist, Azula extinguished the candles in the room, shrouding the room in darkness. Warm arms snaked around her waist then, pulling her back down to the bed and into an embrace. It took a little while—their desire still ran very high—but eventually they both fell asleep, taking comfort in knowing there would be time later.

Ty Lee didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed that they had stopped. She had enjoyed watching them, but she supposed she was kind of intruding in a way—although, Azula hadn't seemed to mind. Maybe there was room for her in the picture after all. She smiled to herself as she too drifted off into sleep.

* * *

Sokka eyed Appa's still sleeping form. In his heart he wanted nothing more than to climb atop the flying bison and head straight for the Boiling Rock despite what Azula had said. But his gut knew it was impractical at the moment. For starters, he had no idea where it was exactly, and even if he did, he wasn't sure he could do it—not alone at least.

"Are you alright, Sokka?" he heard Isaye ask from behind him, causing him to jump a bit in surprise.

He let out a breath and relaxed as she stepped beside him. "I'm fine," he lied.

"You're still thinking about going to get Suki, aren't you?" she said knowingly.

"Yeah," he admitted. "I just hate that she's locked up in a Fire Nation prison."

"We don't like it either, but Suki's strong—stronger than the rest of us. That's one of the many reasons she's our leader."

"I know," he said with a hint of pride.

There was a pause in the conversation before Isaye spoke again. "Do you believe that Aang can defeat the Fire Lord?"

"Absolutely."

"When he does, the war will finally end. All the prisoners of war will be released. Suki won't be at the Boiling Rock much longer."

"You're right. It's just hard waiting for that day to come."

"It will be here sooner than you think."

* * *

Ty Lee awoke late morning to find herself alone in their room with Katara, who was busy reading a scroll. She shifted in her bed, the rustling of sheets alerting the waterbender.

"Oh, you're awake!" she said, a faint blush tingeing her cheeks red as she put down the scroll and moved over toward the bed. "How are you feeling?"

Ty Lee mentally checked over her body. "A little better than yesterday, but I'm still hurting a bit."

"Do you want some more pain medicine?"

Ty Lee considered it for a moment, and then decided on a better option. "I think just your waterbending should be enough," she said with a smile.

"Alright," Katara said, drawing water to her hands and standing at the head of Ty Lee's bed.

The acrobat let out a sigh of relief as Katara's hands moved across her scalp. "That feels nice," she murmured, feeling the pain recede.

Next Katara moved to the girl's ribs—she wouldn't be able to work on her leg and arm again until the splints came off. She carefully drew Ty Lee's shirt up. There was still some skin discoloration, but the deep purple bruising was long gone.

As Katara worked, Ty Lee found herself wishing that those hands would touch her in other places—with or without the water.

"Listen, Ty Lee," Katara's voice cut into her musings. She hesitated for a moment, but then soldiered on. "I'm sorry if Azula and I disturbed your sleep last night. I got a little carried away."

The waterbender was now blushing a furious shade of red, and Ty Lee couldn't help but giggle in response. "Don't worry about it," she replied playfully. "It didn't bother me."

Katara looked at her doubtfully.

"Seriously, don't worry about it, sweetie," Ty Lee insisted, winking at the other girl.

Katara blinked. _"Is she flirting with me?"_

The acrobat laughed lightly again and closed her eyes, focusing on their chi mingling together and leaving Katara to wonder what just had happened.

* * *

"You're healing much faster than other patients I've had with the same injuries," Jalus remarked as he looked over Ty Lee. "Then again, I've never had the pleasure of working with another healer who was a waterbender."

"Yeah, Katara's helped me a lot," Ty Lee agreed with a smile. "Jalus?" she asked suddenly.

"Hmm?"

"Is there anyway I could go outside?" Ty Lee asked the healer, her large grey eyes imploring. It was killing her to stay confined to one place for so long.

"Of course," he replied kindly. "I'll be right back."

He returned moments later, pushing in a small wheelchair and bringing it up beside her bed. Careful to mind her still healing breaks, he cradled her in his arms and easily lifted her up and into the wheelchair.

"You'll need someone to push you around, but this way you won't have to stay here all the time. Why don't I take you out back?" he said as he began to push her out the door.

"That sounds wonderful," she replied, happy just to be able to breathe fresh air again.

"Is it alright if I leave you here?" Jalus asked as he rolled the wheelchair to a stop beside the bench running along the back of the hut. There was an overhang here that provided shade from the heat of the summer sun.

"This is fine. Thanks, Jalus," she said as her eyes landed on Azula moving through her katas sans fire. The firebender paused in between forms to look over at the acrobat in acknowledgement of the other girl. Ty Lee briefly wondered where everyone else was.

The healer took his leave then while Ty Lee continued to watch her friend go through her forms. It was obvious that she had been going for quite awhile. Ty Lee had watched Azula do them countless times—to the point where she knew them all and the order the firebender would always follow.

Gone were the heavy clothes that Azula had been wearing for most of their trip. Now she was wearing attire much more suitable for training in the summer heat. It also did little hide her newly formed scars on her legs—they peaked out from beneath her cropped pants. The scars on her torso were still hidden, as Azula favored a light sleeveless tunic. Still, Ty Lee was happy to see that Azula was learning to live with her scars instead of being ashamed of them.

"No fire?" she asked as Azula finished her final form.

"No, it's not a good idea," the firebender replied, wiping her brow with a towel. "This is an Earth Kingdom town—they don't like the Fire Nation too much," she frowned, tossing the towel over her shoulder as she walked over to Ty Lee. "Hopefully, that will change soon."

"That would be good. It's always better when people get along," she said with a determined nod. "Are you done training?"

"For now," Azula replied, taking a seat on the bench beside Ty Lee's wheelchair. She grimaced as she took in the sight of her injured friend. It was so strange to see her normally active friend bound like this. "How are you holding up?"

"Alright, I guess," she said with a shrug before brightening a bit. "Katara's really helped me a lot though. She's pretty amazing."

"She is," Azula agreed, a slight smile gracing her lips then as she thought of the waterbender.

"You've really helped a lot too," she said, placing her left hand on top of Azula's and gazing at her adoringly.

Azula didn't know what to say but was glad that she was able to do something to comfort Ty Lee. Then she noticed the acrobat's gaze lingering on her a little longer than usual. There was a hint of something that went beyond adoration in her gray eyes that the firebender couldn't quite place, but it made her heart speed up.

"Can I ask you something, Azula?" the acrobat asked, her tone innocent but her eyes belying another motive.

"You can ask, but I won't promise to give you an answer," Azula replied, raising a suspicious eyebrow.

"When did you know you liked girls?"

"_Where are you going with this, Ty Lee?"_ Azula thought before finally deciding to answer her question and find out. "I don't know really. I suppose it was sometime in the spring that I started to seriously consider it. I just never liked the idea of having a boyfriend or a boy's affections. But you know that already. We talked about it in Ba Sing Se."

Ty Lee nodded and then turned her head on one side. "Was Katara the first girl you were interested in?"

"No," Azula paused, hesitating before deciding to just tell her the truth. "You were."

It felt strange to finally admit that. Her sexuality wasn't really something she often talked about, even with Katara.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Azula huffed. "You were always going on about some boy or another. Besides, there were more important things to worry about at the time, like carrying out the will of my father." She frowned, and Ty Lee looked at her sympathetically. "Or at least it seemed that way." Azula sighed, shaking her head to push those thoughts of her father away.

Ty Lee gently squeezed Azula's hand in a gesture of comfort before letting her fingers lightly playing against the firebender's arm. Soon, her touch became more like a caress. Azula swallowed hard. She was suddenly very aware of Ty Lee, her touch, and how she was reacting to it.

"I thought you liked boys," Azula said a little shakily.

"I do. But I realized I like girls too."

"Since when?"

"Well, I've liked you for awhile actually. I just didn't realize it for what it was until I was watching you and Katara the other night."

"Oh," Azula replied, looking away and blushing slightly, feeling herself grow warm at the memory of what Ty Lee had seen. But then the realization of what the acrobat had just admitted to her sank in, leaving her feeling somewhat confused.

Ty Lee stilled her wandering hand and opted for silence, allowing Azula time to process this information before making her next move.

Azula tried to figure out what would be the right thing to say or do. Ty Lee was, in fact, the person who made her start questioning her sexuality. And her attraction to Ty Lee hadn't ever really gone away—but Azula had always been more content to look rather than act on it. What she felt for Katara was deeper. The waterbender had been there during the most trying time in her life, keeping her from falling apart physically and emotionally. But now that she knew Ty Lee reciprocated her attraction, it changed everything.

"I don't know what to say, Ty Lee," Azula admitted, looking back up at her friend.

"How do you feel about me now?"

"I still find you desirable, but I'm with Katara now, and I don't want to mess that up."

"I don't want you to mess that up either," Ty Lee said sincerely.

"Then why are you telling me this?" she asked, genuinely confused. "You backed off Sokka once you knew about Suki."

"That's true, I did. But Sokka was just a passing fancy."

"And I'm not?"

"No, Azula, you're not," she said, interlacing her fingers with Azula's. "It's different with you. It always has been. You're the princess, and you deserve to be admired."

Desire was plainly showing in Ty Lee's eyes now, and Azula felt herself getting drawn in. The urge to kiss the acrobat was overwhelming. Powerless to stop it, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to Ty Lee's.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

Ty Lee's eyes slid shut, and a soft moan slipped passed her lips as Azula's tongue did the same. She eagerly returned the kiss, her warm mouth soft and pliant against Azula's. The firebender found herself getting lost in the sensation—only aware of the feel of the other girl.

"Azula," a voice interrupted, causing them to abruptly break apart. Azula looked up to see Iroh standing in the doorway, his expression inscrutable. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

She stared up at her uncle, stunned. There was a touch of curiosity in his golden eyes as he stepped outside into the sun to stand before them. Ty Lee was blushing slightly, keeping her gaze averted.

"Not at all, Uncle," she said after a moment, finally gathering her wits somewhat.

"Good. I was hoping that you would join me for tea. You're welcome to join us as well, Ty Lee."

Azula looked over at her friend, who glanced at her and offered a shy smile. Azula felt like her mind was running slower than usual—she put her hand up to touch her still tingling lips, the reality of what they had just been doing starting to sink in.

"Maybe some other time," Ty Lee said, peering up at Iroh, still blushing.

"Some other time then," Iroh said agreeably before turning his gaze on his nice. "And you, Azula?"

"I can't," she said, suddenly remembering her prior agreement. "Katara's supposed to meet me here when she gets back from the market." The realization that it very easily could have been Katara that had walked out and seen her kissing Ty Lee was not lost on Azula.

"Ah, well then perhaps later," he said. "I'll be at Jalus's if you need to call on me for anything."

Azula nodded as Iroh went to take his leave.

"Oh, hello, Katara," the older man said, spotting the young waterbender coming through the door. He shot a sideways glance at his niece as he passed by. Azula's heart dropped to her stomach, her hands unconsciously clenching at the cloth of her pants.

"Hi, Iroh," she replied with a smile. "Leaving so soon?"

"Yes, I have some catching up to do with my friends. See you girls later."

Azula found herself letting out of a small breath of relief now that Iroh was gone, fearful that he might say something about what he had seen. She wasn't quite sure what she was going to do, and she hoped that Ty Lee wouldn't say anything until she figured it out.

She hadn't meant to kiss to Ty Lee. It had just… happened. Like some invisible force was drawing them together.

It answered as many questions as it created. Now there was no doubt that her feelings for Ty Lee were on par with what she felt for Katara, and knowing that Ty Lee felt the same way left her feeling equal parts excited and uncertain. She just didn't know what it meant for her and Katara.

It was the not knowing that was most nerve wracking to Azula. One thing was for certain: she definitely didn't want to lose what she had with the waterbender.

"Hey," Katara said softly, her arms wrapping around Azula's shoulders from behind as her warm breath washed over her neck, pulling the firebender from her thoughts.

Azula said nothing as Katara settled down beside her before placing a quick kiss on her lips. She felt a slight panic and wondered if Katara would somehow be able to tell that she had been kissing Ty Lee—if she somehow tasted different because of it.

If she noticed, she didn't say anything.

"It's good to see that you're able to get around, Ty Lee," Katara said, looking over Azula and toward the acrobat.

"Yeah, it's nice to be able get out," she smiled, feeling slightly elated and not at all worried. "I still need someone to help me though."

"I'd be happy to help whenever you want to get out."

"Thanks, Katara." There was a note of flirtation to the way Ty Lee said it and a twinkle in her eye that was not lost on either Azula or Katara—causing the waterbender to blush and Azula to look at them both with raised eyebrows.

"Anyway," Katara said, clearing her throat. "Why don't we take you around town, Ty Lee? You haven't really had a chance to see, Norbu yet."

"That sounds great," the acrobat replied, and both girls looked at Azula.

"Sure, why not?" she said, getting up to stand as she eyed Ty Lee curiously.

The rest of the afternoon passed pleasantly enough. Azula pushed Ty Lee's wheelchair through the marketplace while Katara and Ty Lee chatted conversationally.

"_They do seem to get along quite well,"_ Azula noted to herself as they went. "_That doesn't surprise me though. They're kind of similar in a lot of ways. Still, it does seem that Ty Lee's almost… flirting with Katara."_ Surprisingly, it didn't bother her. _"She's always been like that,"_ she reasoned. _"I'm not even sure she realizes she's doing it. She's always been a flirt."_

"_But I still don't know where that leaves us. Was that just a one time thing? Should it be? I can't help but want to kiss her again,"_ she thought as she watched Ty Lee's lips as the girl spoke. Her eyes then followed Ty Lee's up to Katara's moving mouth, her dark skin, and laughing blue eyes. _"But I don't want to give that up. I hope I haven't made a mistake."_

* * *

"You seem a little distracted," Iroh said as he poured them each a cup of tea.

Azula sighed. She really didn't want to talk about it, especially not with her uncle.

"Are you having problems with Katara?"

"That is _none_ of your business, Uncle," Azula said sharply before letting out another sigh. "But no, I'm not."

As if completely ignoring her, he continued on. "There are two main ingredients to a successful relationship. Love and trust. Without them both, a relationship will always fail." He paused, taking a sip of his tea. "You may love someone, but if you're not honest with them, it cannot last."

"Uncle, it's too premature to be talking of love," she said, wanting the conversation to move onto something else.

"Love comes in many forms. It doesn't necessarily have to be romantic. It can be the love of a friend, a teacher, a student, or family." He set his cup down. "I know we haven't always had the best relationship, Azula, but I am here if you need me."

She looked at him, somewhat surprised. She had assumed that Iroh hadn't really cared for her much, always so concerned about Zuko.

"Like I told your brother, family sticks together."

Azula frowned. "Not our family. We've all acted against each other."

"True, but that's changed recently."

"Not for all of us."

"True again—my brother may be beyond reach right now."

"Not just my father, Uncle," Azula began before stopping herself. Just because things were more friendly between them now didn't mean she was ready to discuss personal matters.

Iroh regarded his niece thoughtfully. "Your mother."

Azula said nothing, not meeting his gaze. Her mother was a sensitive topic that she wasn't ready to talk about with anyone at the moment.

Iroh waited patiently for Azula to speak again. If she wanted to talk about it more, than the door was open. If not, so be it.

Finally, the prodigy cleared her throat and looked back toward her uncle. "Yes, well, enough about that." There were some things regarding the upcoming invasion that she actually wanted to speak about with Iroh this evening. "As you know, I've decided to help play a part in ending this war and join you all for the invasion."

"Yes, I know. Although, I'm curious as to what your exact reasons are."

"I imagine they are similar to yours," she said. "I've realized that a lot of what I thought about the war before is… well, not necessarily wrong, but… uninformed. Almost like I was seeing it all in a vacuum void of the human element. I didn't understand it until I came out of my spiritual sickness."

Iroh nodded in understanding.

"But anyway, that isn't really what I wanted to talk about. I've been thinking about the invasion. There's something about it that concerns me. Even if we do take down my father, the Fire Nation will see it as a coup. The war has been a great financial boon to our country. Do you really expect the citizens to just go along with this? We're all taught that the Avatar is the number one enemy—the one who will try to put an end to the Fire Nations greatness."

"That is an excellent point, Azula. While it's true there may be some opposition amongst the military elite and those who stand to gain financially from the production of weapons, overall there has been a great unrest in the Fire Nation since your father became Fire Lord. No one would dare speak against him outwardly though. To do so would be suicidal.

"However, my contacts in the Fire Nation, which include several members of the nobility, have apprised me of the political situation. The people are ready for a change, and many of them are unhappy with Ozai. The loss of an entire naval fleet at the North Pole and his recent defeat near Ba Sing Se haven't helped matters, and the fact that he is the only remaining member of the royal family has left people questioning the direction of our country. They are feeling uneasy about it, to say the least. The Fire Nation is ready for a change."

* * *

"How much longer do you think Azula will be gone for?" Ty Lee asked, glancing out the window to see the sun beginning to set.

"Probably another hour or so. She said after dusk sometime," Katara replied, looking up from her scroll. With the way Ty Lee's head was turned it was hard to ignore the gash near the top of the girl's head. It looked worse than it actually was, but Katara couldn't help wincing a bit at the sight.

"I'll probably fall asleep before then. Today kind of took a lot out of me," Ty Lee said, turning to look at the waterbender, who was sitting in a chair beside her bed.

"Then you make sure to rest," Katara said, placing a comforting hand on Ty Lee's shoulder. "You need it. You're still healing."

Ty Lee smiled at her concern.

"Do you want me to do some waterbending before you go to bed?"

"You don't need to ask me twice."

As they had done several times before, Katara repositioned her seat to the top of Ty Lee's bed. Bending the water to her hands, she began to gently move her hands over the acrobat's scalp, causing the girl the murmur appreciatively. Katara found herself smiling in response.

"I had a lot of fun today, even though I was stuck in that wheelchair," Ty Lee said as the waterbender moved down to her rib cage. "Thanks for taking such good care of me, Katara."

"It's my pleasure," Katara replied, offering her a warm smile.

"Is it?" she asked softly.

There was something about the way that Ty Lee was looking at her that made Katara swallow hard as her hands slowed down a touch. She realized she'd been reacting like this around Ty Lee a lot the last few days. _"Maybe it just has something to do with doing so much waterbending on her—our chi has been working together so intensely. Unlike other people, she's actively working with me. That's why she's healing so fast… but I have to admit, it feels good for me too."_

"It is," Katara finally said, her blue eyes locking on Ty Lee's.

The acrobat saw the uncertainty mixed with some affection and maybe something more in Katara's aura. Still, she didn't know Katara as well as she knew Azula, and didn't want to push too much more. Besides, she actually was really tired, even though it felt good to have the waterbender's hands on her. Ty Lee placed her good hand on top of Katara's, bringing them to a halt and pulling the girl out of her reverie.

Katara blushed again. "Right, well, I think I'm going to turn in now."

"Okay," Ty Lee said with a yawn. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Ty Lee," she said, moving over to her bed and slipping out of her clothes and down to her underwrappings. She blew out the candle on the nightstand and climbed into bed.

_"What is going on with me? I'm acting like I did when I first realized I liked Azula."_ Her brow furrowed slightly at the thought. _"It's the healing,"_ she tried to rationalize. _"I'm just making her feel better, and helping people makes me happy."_ Momentarily satisfied with that answer, Katara quickly fell asleep.

* * *

"Our time together is coming to an end," Guru Pathik said to his young pupil as they sat atop the uppermost section of the Eastern Air Temple.

"What do you mean?" Aang asked. "We still have over a week together."

"You will be called away soon—both you and your friends."

Aang knew without a doubt that his guru had insights into the true nature of things and could see beyond ordinary appearances. He looked at his teacher thoughtfully. "How do you know this?"

"Time is an illusion. Ultimately, past, present, and future are no different. When you open all your chakras—and _keep_ them open—nothing will be hidden from your mind or your heart."

Aang fell silent for a moment, contemplating Pathik's words. "I feel like I made progress the first week with you. But then I started thinking about my upcoming fight with the Fire Lord, and I feel as though I'm taking a step backwards."

Pathik nodded at the boy, urging him to continue.

"The more I think about facing the Fire Lord, the more confused I get. The monks taught me that all life is sacred, and I truly see it that way. But I don't know how I'm going to defeat the Fire Lord without taking his life. Killing him goes against what I know to be right. Yet if I don't stop him, he'll keep hurting people."

"You're looking at it as if your only two choices are to act with violence or to not act at all. The important thing is to maintain understanding of the true nature of whatever action you take.

"Whichever choice you make, do this act without feeling attachment for even a moment. For the truth is that you can reach the highest of goals by acting, if it is done free of attachment."

"That's been something I haven't been able to do. Why do I have to let go of my attachment? There are people that need to be saved! There is a world to be saved!"

"No one is denying that. Let me explain something about freeing yourself from earthly attachment. It doesn't mean you don't care about the people you love. It doesn't mean you don't keep working towards saving the world. It means letting go of your wrong ideas about how the world works—your illusions. Things _seem_ to be themselves, but ultimately, they are not themselves at all.

"There is nothing at all that I do. There is nothing I fail to reach, and nothing I reach. Yet still I move, and still I act. Think how those who fail to understand still go and perform their acts with attachment. Those who possess understanding perform the _very same acts_, but use their understanding—for their dream is to help the entire world."

Aang's face lit up as it finally made sense. Tears of happiness came to his eyes as he smiled at his teacher, who returned it. "I understand, Guru."

* * *

It was late when Azula arrived back at the hut. She was surprised at the ease at which she found speaking to Iroh. She could never understand why so many in the military held him in such high regard or why he was Fire Lord Azulon's favored son, but now it was becoming clearer. She had always thought him to be fat, lazy, and bordering on senile, but she was beginning to realize that he was anything but that. It actually was very intelligent on his part—it made him appear to be less of a threat, which worked to his advantage.

"_Perhaps I could learn a thing or two from him,"_ she thought with a disbelieving smile as she came to the door of her bedroom. She quietly entered the room so as not to disturb its sleeping occupants, forming a small flame in her palm so she could see.

Azula padded over to the bed she shared with Katara, gazing down at the sleeping girl. Her eyes then shifted over to Ty Lee's sleeping form, and thoughts of their kiss from earlier rose in her mind. Looking back at Katara, she thought of what her uncle had said about trust as she quickly changed into her sleeping tunic.

Honesty was such a rare thing in her life, she reflected. How many lies had she told? _"Spirits, I've lied about everything and anything, no matter how big or small. I lied about not caring that my mother was gone. I even taunted Zuko about it."_ She sighed, getting into bed and gently wrapping one arm around Katara, careful not to disturb her. _"But I'm getting distracted. What am I going to tell her if I tell her anything at all?_

_"A kiss itself, like anything else, means nothing. It's the intent behind it. I do care for Ty Lee. And I care for Katara," _she thought, gently resting her forehead between Katara's shoulders. _"If only there was some way I could have them both."_


End file.
